SEATTLE — An 18-year-old woman accused of fatally shooting a rideshare driver faced a judge in the King County Courthouse on Monday.
Neiana Allen-Bailey is accused of a deadly carjacking that killed 52-year-old Amare Geda.
Geda was killed in SoDo early on the morning of Aug. 8, just before he was about to return home from work, according to his wife.
A judge set Allen-Bailey’s bail at $2,000,000.
Prosecutors claim surveillance video shows someone walking toward and around Geda’s car before opening the driver’s door.
The security footage shows a struggle before Geda dropped to the ground, according to court documents. The entire interaction lasted 31 seconds.
Geda’s car was found two days later on Ninth Avenue and North John Street after a parking complaint.
Allen-Bailey eventually entered the car and was taken into custody by officers.
Court papers say Allen-Bailey claimed she bought the car on the OfferUp app. She later admitted the car was Geda’s, who she claimed initiated a fight, prosecutors say.
“She said she got in his car and drove off. Very soon, she started throwing Mr. Geda’s possessions out of the car, including his cell phone,” a Seattle Police detective noted in court documents.
Allen-Bailey told detectives she drove around in Geda’s car for the next couple of days, visited her mother and brother in Skyway, bought and smoked marijuana in Rainier Beach, and got her hair done in Kent.
“She said she was planning on turning the car in to police by calling an anonymous tip line, but she ‘did not get to that,’ a Seattle Police detective stated in court documents.
Allen-Bailey’s defense attorney, Imran Sultan, argued in court that the 18-year-old’s statements should not be taken as fact. Sultan also argued the surveillance video wasn’t clear enough to identify Allen-Bailey as the suspect.
“The precise nature of what happened on Aug. 8 of this year is still unknown,” Sultan said in court on Monday. “Neiana Allen-Bailey is 18 years old. She is still a teenager.”
Allen-Bailey is set to be back in court for an omnibus hearing on Oct. 2.
Rideshare drivers supporting Geda and his family were present for the court hearing.
“We are seeking justice for the family of Amare (Geda). And also, we are seeking justice for all rideshare drivers in Seattle. It’s very painful,” Ahmed Mumin, the executive director of the Seattle Rideshare Driver’s Association, said on Monday. “Rideshare drivers in Seattle are facing safety issues every day… I don’t think anything is going to change at this time because lawmakers have not taken this industry seriously.”
Last year, Mohamed Kediye was fatally shot while working as a rideshare driver. The 48-year-old was a husband and father of six children.
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