Three inmates hijacked Lyft and kidnapped driver for 10 hours after escaping Georgia jail, FBI says | EUROtoday

Three inmates who escaped a Georgia jail allegedly hijacked a Lyft and kidnapped the feminine driver at knifepoint after placing a rope round her neck and threatening to kill her as they fled to Florida, courtroom paperwork state.

Stevenson Charles, 24, Yusuf Minor, 31, and Naod Yohannes, 25, are again in custody this week after a terrifying 10-hour ordeal for the Lyft driver.

After escaping from Georgia’s DeKalb County Jail in some unspecified time in the future December 22, the lads had been picked up by an unnamed man and brought to certainly one of their girlfriends’ properties, in accordance with police. There, a Lyft experience was organized to whisk them away to Florida, in accordance with a prison grievance filed in federal courtroom.

The driver, who was not named within the grievance, later informed investigators that it appeared that the automobile was ordered by a lady. Prosecutors mentioned Minor’s girlfriend is the one who known as the Lyft for the three male passengers.

During the automobile experience to Miami, the lads sure the motive force’s fingers, wrapped a rope round her neck and repeatedly threatened to kill her, in accordance with the grievance.

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She was dragged into the backseat and warned to not wrestle or they might rape and kill her, in accordance with the FBI. The driver estimated she was held captive for as much as 10 hours, the grievance states.

After attempting to flee at one level, the motive force endured “increased threats of being shot, raped, and tortured,” the FBI agent wrote within the grievance.

The males then allegedly used the motive force’s bank cards to lease a short-term rental property in Miramar, Florida, which is about 25 miles north of Miami.

At some level, Charles and Yohannes left the rental within the driver’s stolen automobile, whereas Minor stayed behind, in accordance with the grievance.

The stolen automobile was detected with using license plate readers, which led to the arrests of Charles and Yohannes, federal prosecutors mentioned.

Minor was arrested a short while later on the rental, the place authorities discovered the sufferer, in accordance with the grievance. It’s not clear if the sufferer sustained any critical accidents.

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In an assertion supplied to NBC News, a Lyft spokesperson mentioned the corporate was “concerned by this incident and relieved that the driver is safe.”

“Our hearts are with the driver and we have reached out to offer support,” the spokesperson mentioned. “Lyft is working closely with law enforcement to assist in any way we can as the investigation continues.”

All three males are again in custody and now face extra kidnapping expenses.

According to on-line inmate data, Minor and Yohannes had been serving life sentences for homicide on the time of the escape. Charles was being held on expenses of homicide and armed theft.

DeKalb County Sheriff Melody Maddox informed reporters that the lads escaped from an Atlanta-area jail that’s “deteriorating right before our eyes. The inmates were able to “compromise” part of the power, which investigators and jail officers at the moment are repairing.