State Police: Lyft driver called police, felt unsafe with passenger who later stole her car

PITTSBURGH — Pennsylvania State Police say a Lyft driver called police for help early Thursday morning after she felt unsafe with a passenger.

According to police, the driver pulled into an East Pittsburgh Sunoco, got out of the car, left her keys inside and went to ask for help.

That’s when police say the passenger took off in her 2021 Red Toyota 4Runner, a car they believed to be a rental.

The car was later found abandoned in Homewood.

Now, other ride-share drivers are telling Channel 11 what they do to protect themselves while on the job.

“There is no protocol,” said ride-share driver David. “Just be as reasonable with them (passengers) as you can, hopefully that calms them down.”

Another driver says he keeps a camera on his dashboard to monitor his passengers and capture any illegal activity.

“When you have something like that, people are less likely to do crazy stuff,” said driver Guy. “On the Uber app, there is a distress button you can push and it will immediately alert 911. So that’s also good.”

In the meantime, many ride-share drivers say they’re still uneasy following the death of Christi Spicuzza.

The mother of four was murdered back in February while driving for Uber.

Vigil for mother, Uber driver found dead along Monroeville road

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