A Doral Uber driver is behind bars after a woman told deputies she was drugged, kidnapped and sexually battered following a night of clubbing, according to Miami-Dade records. Authorities identified the driver as 42-year-old Yusel Perez, and say hospital treatment and surveillance footage helped lock in the case against him.
The woman reported the incident to the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Office on June 4, saying she had been out at clubs the night before and believed she had been given some kind of drug, according to an arrest report cited by NBC6. Investigators say she blacked out and later woke up at Palm Lakes Hospital, where she complained of vaginal soreness.
Detectives then pulled surveillance video that, according to the report, shows Perez carrying the visibly inebriated woman into the Doral apartment where he lived. He was later arrested in Doral and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. Jail records list the charges as sexual battery while the victim was physically incapacitated and kidnapping.
Rideshare safety now under the microscope
The case is landing in the middle of a long-running debate over how safe rideshares really are and how aggressively companies vet and discipline drivers. As reported by NBC New York (AP), Uber's own safety reports show that reported sexual-assault incidents dropped from 5,981 in 2017–2018 to 2,717 in 2021–2022. Advocates, however, argue that those numbers still point to a serious problem and say more safeguards are needed.
What Florida law says about the charges
Under Florida law, sexual battery against someone who is "physically helpless" is a felony offense. That term covers people who are unconscious or otherwise unable to communicate that they do not consent, according to Florida Statutes §794.011. Kidnapping is charged separately, with its own set of severe penalties laid out in Chapter 787. Together, those statutes form the legal backbone of the case Perez is now facing.
NBC6 reports that it reached out to Uber for comment as the criminal investigation continues. Court records do not yet list a trial date. Perez remains in Miami-Dade custody at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center while authorities continue to investigate.
