Boston city councilor calls for more oversight of rideshare drivers after alleged rape

By Jennifer Eagan

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    BOSTON (WCVB) — Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn is calling on the city and police to do more to ensure rideshare users, especially women, are safe.

Flynn sent a letter Tuesday suggesting Boston police need a larger role in overseeing public safety issues related to rideshares such as Uber and Lyft.

Flynn proposed creating a division within the Boston Police Department to better regulate drivers. He said rideshare drivers should be required to register with the city and get fingerprinted.

Currently, drivers undergo a two-step background check; however, no fingerprinting is required.

Flynn’s letter comes after an Uber driver was charged with raping a young woman. Court documents said the woman got into an Uber at LOCO Taqueria in South Boston.

At the end of the 1-mile ride home, the woman told police the driver, Herman Jiokeng, got in the back seat and sexually assaulted her.

Her roommate was using an app to track her location and ran out when she noticed she was outside. The roommate called 911 after seeing movement in the backseat and making eye contact with a man.

When police questioned the driver, he told them that he did enter the back seat of his vehicle, but he “didn’t remember” whether he had any sexual contact with the victim, officials said.

Jiokeng was charged with one count of rape and was held until a dangerousness hearing, which is scheduled for Friday.

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