Friendswood Police Arrest Rideshare Driver for Aggravated Kidnapping

FRIENDSWOOD, TX – A Houston rideshare driver has been arrested and charged with Aggravated Kidnapping after he allegedly ended a ride early and stopped in a vacant parking lot with a sleeping passenger.
On June 28, the Friendswood Police Department received a report from a 21-year-old woman who had been picked up in Galveston by a pre-scheduled rideshare. Her family, who were tracking her location, noticed the ride had been prematurely ended at a vacant business parking lot instead of their Friendswood home.
Family members drove to the parking lot and found the woman in the front seat of the vehicle. They safely removed her and took her home. She told them she had been falling in and out of sleep on the ride home after drinking earlier in the evening.
Following an investigation, detectives determined the driver had intentionally ended the ride before reaching the destination. The Galveston County District Attorney’s Office issued a warrant for the driver, identified as Sameh Chami, 49, of Houston.
Friendswood officers took Chami into custody in Houston on August 6 and transported him to the Friendswood City Jail. Following his arrest, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) placed a detainer on him due to his immigration status.