Uber driver kidnapped passenger to boost fare

The trip started in Manhattan and its destination was changed to Boston, more than 200 miles away

An Uber driver has pleaded guilty to kidnapping a sleeping passenger, after driving her more than 60 miles from her destination to boost his fare.

She awoke to find the driver "with his hand under her shirt", court records said, and when she had tried to call for help, he had grabbed her phone.

She had then fled, only to find herself in Connecticut instead of New York.

Complaining to Uber, she discovered the trip's destination had been changed to Boston, incurring a $1,047 (£795) fare.

During interviews with police, the driver, Harbir Parmar, of Queens, confessed to a series of ride-rigging offences, which had netted him more than $3,600 in bogus charges.

He will be sentenced in June this year and could face life imprisonment for the kidnapping offence.

US attorney Geoffrey Berman said Parmar had "terrorised" his victim and would be "held accountable".

"What's been reported is horrible and something no person should go through," an Uber spokesman told technology news website The Register.

"As soon as we became aware, we immediately removed this individual's access to the platform."