Driver sues Lyft after she says she was kidnapped and assaulted by suspect linked to Houston-area theft ring

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A wife and mother of four working a side job to make ends meet claims she was sexually assaulted and held at gunpoint while working as a Lyft driver, and she's now suing the company for not having protected her.

Officials said the suspect was linked to a theft ring that targeted more than a dozen rideshare drivers in the Houston area.

Blizzard Greenberg attorneys represent the victim, identified as JW, in the lawsuit filed against Lyft and the alleged attacker. ABC13 kept the victim anonymous because she feared for her safety.

“What was going through my mind at that moment was, 'I'm about to die, I'm about to die, this is it,'” JW said.

In June 2023, she was working as a Lyft driver as a side hustle when she accepted a ride she had initially tried to decline.

“There was a message, and it said if I didn’t take the ride, I could be penalized,” she said. “I felt pressured and I did the trick.”

The ride from Missouri City to Martin Luther King Blvd near the South Loop was just $3.94.

According to the lawsuit, Kenneth Kelley, 19, was the passenger she took. The lawsuit says he was in high school and living with his mother at the time.

As they approached the drop-off location, the lawsuit says Kelley pulled out a gun, held it to her head and demanded she continue driving.

According to the lawsuit, Kelley began describing the sexual things he planned to do to her, including holding a gun to the back of her head while assaulting her.

“He groped me sexually and said a lot of nasty things,” JW said. “I immediately prayed and begged for my life.”

According to the lawsuit, Kelley and five other young men are linked to a total of 19 different robberies from Uber and Lyft drivers, all of which follow a similar pattern: drivers held at gunpoint and forced to withdraw cash after being driven. The lawsuit says Kelly forced another victim to have oral sex at gunpoint.

A federal grand jury in Houston recently indicted Kelley and the five others on a total of 24 counts, including interference with commerce by robbery and use and carrying of a firearm during and in connection with a crime of violence.

JW believes Lyft did not have appropriate measures in place to protect her as a driver.

According to the lawsuit, Kelley's first victim was kidnapped in April 2023 and the driver reported the crimes to the company, but the company failed to notify police in a timely manner, allowing Kelley to continue using the Lyft app.

The lawsuit also says Kelley used a false name rather than his real identity, and Lyft did not provide him with any photo ID of the rider. It was a decision that the mother says completely changed her life.

“I almost lost my life over $3.95 because of someone they put in my car with a fake name, a fake account,” she said.

Kelley was also charged with 10 criminal counts, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated kidnapping and sexual assault. He was taken into custody by US Marshals.

ABC13 reached out to Lyft for comment on the lawsuit and allegations.

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