Fort Worth Lyft driver shot by passenger during private ride
FORT WORTH, Texas - Police say a Fort Worth Lyft driver was shot during an ‘off-the-books’ ride by a passenger he met last week.
The shooting happened shortly before 8 p.m. Tuesday near the 8100 block of Cassie Lane.
From his hospital bed, 29-year-old Marx Jean, of Arlington, tells FOX 4 he’s been driving for Lyft on the side for five years.
However, on Tuesday night, Jean says he agreed to a ride off the platform from an apartment complex near Crowley Road and Sycamore School Road in Fort Worth.
Jean says he met the gunman last week while giving him a Lyft ride and offered his phone number for any future ‘off-the-book' rides.
Jean says he felt a little uneasy when the man decided to sit in the front. A woman got in the backseat.
Jean asked for the fare to be paid upfront. An argument took place, and Jean says the suspect opened fire, striking him in the arm and leg.
"He pulled the gun on me," he recalled. "I’m like what is going on? Everything is going so fast. He says, ‘Give me your car. Get out of the car.’"
"We don’t know if this was going to lead to a carjacking or a robbery, but it did involve a disagreement," said Fort Worth Police Officer Buddy Calzada.
Jean made the quick decision to drive to a nearby Taco Casa after being shot three times.
"He shot me, and I looked at my arm. 'I got shot! I got shot! All I see is blood," he recalled. "Do I go left? Do I go right? So I get out of the apartment and go to the nearest convenience store."
Jean was bleeding as he dialed 911 for help. The gunman and the unknown woman ran away.
"One of the things we want to stress is that it’s safest to use the application, like Lyft. It has emergency notification. It lets you know who you picked up, where you picked them up and their destinations," Calzada said.
Jean underwent surgery Wednesday afternoon.
Fort Worth police say they’re still looking for the gunman and the woman who was in the backseat.
Lyft says off-platform rides are strictly prohibited.
"While this incident did not occur on the Lyft platform, we stand ready to assist law enforcement with any investigation," a company spokesperson said.
No arrests have been made. Anyone with information is urged to contact the Fort Worth Police Department.