An Uber driver has been arrested after officials say he tried to burglarize his passengers’ home after dropping them off at the airport.
According to CBS17, police say Jackie Wilson completed a trip from an Airbnb rental in San Mateo to the San Francisco International Airport. After the ride, Wilson reportedly returned to the pickup location and tried to break in.
Fortunately, the home was equipped with a ring doorbell and security alarm, which, in turn, scared Wilson off. However, police say he still managed to burglarize a different home in the area, which was also equipped with a Ring security system. “[He] tore apart the whole house, tossed everything. All the drawers were open, and every piece of furniture moved. He opened my safe,” the victim, Scott said.
After the incident, the victims published the security footage from their Ring doorbell to the Ring community, which helped identify the suspect. According to the publication, the owner of the Airbnb contacted the victims and identified the intruder as the Uber Driver. ”He immediately contacted his tenants, who had just left within the hour and said, ‘Do you know this guy?’’ They said, ‘Yeah, that’s our Uber driver,” Scott said.
Although Wilson was identified, tracked down and arrested using the Uber App, the victims were horrified after learning the suspect had a criminal past, as they called for the company to screen their drivers. “I’m definitely thinking twice about taking ride shares after this. I’m thinking everybody should. I mean, this is a big deal. He used this to facilitate committing a crime,” Scott said.
Wilson was arrested and charged for burglary and attempted burglary, but police are still investigating the incidents to discover any other burglaries in the area. In the meantime, Uber is cooperating with officials.
That’s awful. San Mateo is in California and they do run background checks in California. It has to be spotless in order to get approved. How did he ever get to drive for Uber with a dirty background?