Uber Driver Carjacked, Stabbed in Face by 17-Year-Old Passenger

A simple trip to St. Ann turned into a nightmare for an Uber driver on Sunday, as a 17-year-old male passenger stabbed him in the face, stole his car and led police on a brief chase before surrendering.

According to the St. Ann Police Department, the Uber driver picked up three teenaged passengers, two males and one female, on Lindell Boulevard in St. Louis on Sunday afternoon. However, police don't believe the violent scheme was planned by the entire group; two of the passengers were apparently uninvolved in the attack, which occurred after the driver dropped them off at a home in the north county suburb near Geraldine and Lorraine avenues.

“They had absolutely nothing to do with it,” St. Ann Police Lt. Dan Cowsert told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He called the stabbing and carjacking a "completely random attack."

While two passengers exited the Uber to grab their bags from the trunk, the third allegedly stayed inside the vehicle and stabbed the driver, a 47-year-old man. Then the teen stole the car.

The victim managed to escape from the car at some point following the attack and call 911. He was later taken to a hospital for treatment; his condition is unknown.

As for the attacker, he made it about seven miles — at one point, according to a witness interviewed by KSDK, he busted through a gated stop sign — before pulling over on Missouri Bottom Road and giving himself up. Police recovered a knife, and a bloody cellphone belonging to the victim was found near the St. Anne Police Department, having apparently been tossed during the chase.

In a statement to KSDK, a spokesperson for Uber said the rider has been permanently removed from the app.

"The senseless act of violence the driver reported to police is deeply troubling," the spokesperson said. "We have been in contact with the driver and stand ready to help police."

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