This post contains mentions of domestic violence and self-harm.
TikToker @keekssmageekss has taken to the platform to share her experience of an Uber ride gone awry.
In a series of videos posted to the platform, the TikToker said that her driver claimed to have gone to jail for choking his girlfriend, who then joined them for the ride. The initial video of the incident has received over 385,000 views.
“He was stopping my ride to pick up his girlfriend who he claims is crazy,” text overlays on the video read. “I felt extremely unsafe and afraid that if I tried to get out of the Uber or cancel the ride it would make things worse. He said he went to jail for choking her. I tried my best to stay calm and nice to not escalate the situation but you can hear the nervousness in my voice and see how heavy I was breathing.”
@keekssmageekss Last night I took an Uber alone and it was the scariest experience ever! I didn’t know what to do #uber #nightmare #dangerous #anxiety #uberfromhell ♬ original sound – Keeksmageeks
In the video, her driver can be heard talking about his military career and saying that he felt he couldn’t “let [his girlfriend] go,” out of fear that doing so would cause her to end her life. The driver thanked the TikToker for “being patient” as they waited for the girlfriend.
The next morning, she posted a follow-up video addressing the concerns of some commenters, saying the situation was very stressful and that she was just trying to calm her anxiety.
“Thank you everyone for checking on me and for the kind comments,” she said in the video. “I posted this because even though I’m still kind of triggered by it all, I think it’s important for other women who maybe have never experienced something like this to be aware that this is a situation that could happen and understand how to handle the situation to keep yourself safe.”
@keekssmageekss Reply to @domo.drive I’m just trying to shake it off now and relax my anxiety. #uber #uberfromhell #part2 ♬ original sound – Keeksmageeks
She confirmed in the comment section of her second video that the driver’s girlfriend did in fact get in the car, and asked her several personal questions that she ended up deflecting. She also said her best friend and boyfriend were each tracking her location to make sure she got home.
Commenters questioned @keekssmageekss, asking why she didn’t just use any kind of safety or emergency features of the Uber app. She replied that she wasn’t sure how it worked, and she didn’t want to alert the driver to how she was feeling, unsure if he would react violently.
“I literally don’t understand why you didn’t do the emergency services option Uber has in the app,” one such commenter wrote.
When another commenter wrote that they didn’t understand why she didn’t just try to get out of the vehicle, @keekssmageekss told them they “don’t have to.”
“You can say what you would have done but until you’re living it you don’t know,” she wrote.
The Daily Dot has reached out to @keekssmageekss via TikTok DM and a comment on the video regarding the situation, as well as to Uber directly.
Source: https://www.dailydot.com/irl/uber-driver-picks-up-girlfriend-mid-ride-tiktok/