The Uber driver said the suspect tried to strangle him and yelled racial slurs during the assault.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A man is facing charges after police say he tried to strangle an Uber driver during a ride in Uptown earlier this month.
The driver told WCNC Charlotte that he was attacked because of his race, sharing video of the violent encounter.
Court documents show that Sean Smith was arrested last Monday. He bonded out of jail the next day. Those documents also accuse Smith of fighting with a security guard at the Charlotte Transportation Center.
According to CMPD, a gray Honda Civic pulled into the Charlotte Transportation Center around 10:40 p.m. on May 3 with the driver yelling for help. A security officer responded to the situation and saw the passenger, identified as Smith, attacking Osvaldo Rivera McIntosh. The passenger then got out of the car and allegedly attacked the officer, punching him in the neck and pushing him. CMPD was able to get control of the situation and Smith was taken into custody.
CMPD alleges that Smith was highly intoxicated and throwing up after he was arrested. He was charged with assaulting the security officer and McIntosh.
McIntosh said the passenger got into his car and identified himself as “Jacob.” He then said Smith started questioning him about his accent. A few minutes later, McIntosh said he was attacked.
McIntosh believes that, aside from potentially being drunk, the passenger attacked him because of his Cuban heritage, as that was the only point of conversation the two had prior to the incident.
“I didn’t have any other words with him. That was the only thing that I talked to him about,” McIntosh said.
Smith is scheduled to appear in court again on Sept. 30.
For the latest breaking news, weather and traffic alerts that impact you from WCNC Charlotte, download the WCNC Charlotte mobile app and enable push notifications.
