Oct 07, 2024
An unhinged Uber driver repeatedly threatened to kill a customer who got him kicked off the rideshare app over a service dog, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn allege. Mark Bababekov, 47, of Queens, was locked out of the rideshare platform in September 2022 after he cancelled a trip because his fare had a service animal, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Monday. The rider, in turn, file a complaint that got Bababekov’s Uber account deactivated, the feds allege. Bababekov spent the next two years demanding the company provide him proof the pooch was actually a service animal — and in May, those demands went off the rails, according to the complaint. Oven the next four months Bababekov repeatedly told Uber employees he knew where the passenger lived, that he’d run the man over, and that he’d beat him with a baseball bat, federal authorities allege. Though the complaint doesn’t name Uber, the rideshare giant was identified Monday at Bababekov’s arraignment in Brooklyn Federal Court, and Uber officials confirmed their involvement. Uber (Shutterstock) He also called the rider at least 18 times, leaving voicemails threatening to put him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life, the feds allege. The threats continued despite warnings from the FBI, according to court documents. Bababekov’s threats started on May 20, when he called Uber’s support line, located in the Philippines, and according to the feds ranted: “I have nothing to lose in life…. (The customer) ruined my life. I am going to ruin his life…. I have no choice but to run him over…. I will run him over, make him permanently disabled…. His life’s gonna end.” The diatribe earned him a visit at his Fresh Meadows home the next day from an FBI agent who “admonished” him, according to a criminal complaint. He told the agent he’d stop making threats, but that assurance was short-lived. On June 1, Bababekov wrote a message through Uber’s app, warning, “You have six days left to provide me the documents … if you’re not gonna provide me any evidence or any documents, your customer m—–f—– gonna get hurt,” the feds allege. He sent another message through the app on June 7, and in September he called Uber, describing his lust for violence in detail, the feds allege. One of those calls lasted a half-hour. “I’m a homeless. I’m sleeping in the car for the past three months. There’s only one way to prove that I was innocent… to go to his house, and just either kill him or make him disabled,” he said in a recorded Sept. 11 call, according to the complaint. “Permanently make him disabled, that he cannot even talk. That he only can drink or eat through the straw.” The complaint also lays out a series of voicemails threatening violence to the customer in August and September. “Yo real estate boy. If you have any balls between your legs, give me a call, or whatever is going to happen next is on you,” Bababekov is accused of saying in a Sept. 19 voicemail. “I am going to ruin your life, my way. No law will be involved. Watch carefully what will happen.” Finally, in a string of calls to the rideshare company Sept. 24, he vowed, “I know where the f—ing customer lives. I know where he works…. I have no choice but to f–ing kill him.” “I’m ready to go to jail” and “by the end of the week, he’s gonna die,” the voicemails promised. Bababekov was arrested Saturday and charged with transmitting a threat through interstate communications. He could face up to five years in prison if convicted at trial. Uber officials told the Daily News on Monday the threats started about a month after a neutral arbitrator upheld the company’s decision to remove him from the platform. “Threats of violence will not be tolerated and our teams proactively reported this alarming behavior to authorities. We appreciate their quick action and will continue to support their investigation,” Uber spokesman Josh Gold said. Bababekov still works as a car service driver for a Manhattan-based livery base. The city Taxi and Limousine Commission is seeking to suspend his license, TLC spokesman Jason Kersten said Monday. He was released on $75,000 bond and place on home detention, though he’s allowed to leave his home because of his job. Brooklyn Federal Court Magistrate Judge Lois Bloom warned Bababekov he couldn’t reach out to the passenger, “and also Uber, you can’t talk to them at all.” When Bababekov signaled he wanted to sue Uber, the judge warned: “I’m telling you sir, that you are creating this bad situation for yourself… Deal with this case. Don’t talk about filing a civil case against Uber.” She added, “Now you have a criminal case against you. Worry about proving your innocence.” His lawyer, Michael Schneider of the Federal Defenders, declined to comment Monday.        
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