'He is not a monster, he's not a rapist': Wife of accused 'fake' ride-share driver defends husband

After a 34-year-old man accused of rape and posing as a ride-share driver to target women faced a judge, the suspect's wife told KIRO-7 many of the accusations are based on misunderstandings.

"I'm feeling that my husband is being accused of things such as rape, and it hurts me because I know it's not true," she said.

KIRO-7 agreed not to share the names of the couple because the suspect has not yet been formally charged by King County Court.

The suspect is accused of raping a woman on Dec. 16, 2018, inside his car in White Center, after police say he led her to believe he was her Uber driver and drove her home from a bar in Seattle's Ballard area.

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The suspect's wife told KIRO-7 her husband admitted to having sex with the woman, but she says he's being wrongly accused of rape.

"If somebody did that, they should be charged," she said. "But I know deep in my heart that he's not guilty of rape. Yes, he's guilty of having sex with somebody else. But I know it wasn't forcefully. He's not that type of person. He has too much to lose."

She also told KIRO-7 her husband is wrongly accused of posing or impersonating a ride-share driver. She said he "used to work for Uber," but now works as an "independent driver."

"He was working for Uber, until they found out that he didn't have a Social Security number," she said. 
"Even when he was working for Uber, there were no allegations made. There was none of this. He was clean."

The suspect's wife told KIRO-7 her husband is the driver seen in a Reddit video posted by a woman last year who warned women to "be careful," after she recorded video as he approached her, asking if she needed a ride.

Police said another woman who saw surveillance video on KIRO 7 - showing the suspect dropping the victim off at her door told police the same man drove her home from a Ballard bar last August, and tried to push his way into her home.

"He tried to push the door in at that time, she pushed back and was able to slam the door and lock it," said King County Sgt. Ryan Abbott.

The suspect's wife says her husband is not only being falsely accused, she believes the porch surveillance video could reveal a lot more.

"I want to know, where's the rest of that video?" she asked. "What I know is that he gave her a hug and a kiss. Where's the rest of that video? There's a lot that people need to know. He's not a monster. He's not a rapist. He's the father of a 4-year-old boy."

On Wednesday, April 3, after the couple came forward to police, the suspect was released after turning himself in and giving a statement. According to a King County Sheriff spokesman, the suspect was released because he had a clear criminal record.

Minutes later, King County deputies responded to 911 calls after they reported the couple "drove to the victim's house and started knocking on the door and all the neighbors' doors to confront the victim."

"It was not a confrontation at all," said the suspect's wife, who said she was there "to find the truth."

"My husband stayed in the car, and I went to the door, hoping to talk to her, woman-to-woman. I wanted to hear what she was thinking," she said.

The suspect is jailed on $750,000 bond. He is due back in court Monday.

Cox Media Group