JOHOR BARU: There have been no incidents of attempted abductions like the ones that went viral on social media, involving an e-hailing driver and a female passenger recently.
Johor Baru Utara police chief Assistant Commissioner Balveer Singh Mahindar Singh said the matter was a misunderstanding when the e-hailing driver changed the route without informing his passenger, which resulted in the passenger jumping from the car.
"We received a report on Aug 11 from a man, who was an e-hailing driver, saying that that he picked up a passenger, a woman, around 4.50pm at Taman Seroja, heading to Kip Mall in Tampoi.
"However, due to road maintenance work, the driver had to re-route from their original path and head towards Taman Perling to make a U-turn on Jalan Persisiran Perling.
"Upon realising that the route had changed, the passenger jumped out of the moving car," he said in a media statement today.
He said the driver immediately stopped to assist the passenger, who was taken to the hospital by members of the public.
"The driver lodged a police report immediately after the incident and reported to the company.
The passenger also filed a police report about the incident.
"The investigation found that there was no criminal element involved," he said.
At the same time, Balveer Singh advised e-hailing drivers to improve communication with passengers when alternative routes are necessary.
"We also advise the public to always be vigilant but to avoid acting hastily as this can pose risks to yourself and others.
"If a suspicious or unexpected situation occurs, it is recommended to communicate with the driver or the party involved to get an explanation.
"If you still feel unsafe, contact the police immediately," he said.
Earlier, a screenshot went viral showing the name of the driver who was allegedly involved in the attempted abduction, leading the woman to jump out of the car to protect herself.
The screenshot also claimed that the driver turned off the location signal and changed to 'offline' status in the e-hailing application.