Grab driver detained for threatening rider

A commuter books a vehicle via ride-hailing app Grab in Metro Manila. (Photo by RICHARD A. REYES / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

It was a collision — not of vehicles but of pride.

That was how a police investigator described the commotion that ensued between a Grab driver and his passenger, which led to a litany of criminal complaints — oral defamation, threats and reckless imprudence resulting in physical injury — being filed against the former in the Pasay City prosecutor’s office on Saturday.

According to a police report, the complainant, 30-year-old businesswoman Remadel Zacarias, booked a Grab car on Friday afternoon to pick her up from her house at Bonifacio Global City (BGC) and bring her to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) office in Parañaque City.

When the car reached McKinley Road, however, she asked the driver, Joseph Vibar, 41, to take her back home because she was feeling nauseous, said PO3 Elvin Olmedillo, case investigator.

Heated exchange

“The Grab driver refused because the destination she had booked was the DFA in Parañaque City,” Olmedillo added. “A verbal tussle ensued. The victim’s complaint said she was cursed at while the driver said he was just reacting to her harsh words.”

Olmedillo said that according to the victim, Vibar had dared her to file a complaint against him, saying that if she didn’t, he would come for her since he knew where she lived.

Zacarias said she took this as a threat.

Vibar, on the other hand, claimed that Zacarias had called him “stupid.”

Olmedillo said that the heated exchange continued until the pair got to Makati City, where Vibar told Zacarias he could drop her off either at the DFA or at SM Makati.

No agreement was reached, however, and when the car was on Edsa in Pasay City, near the Victory Liner bus terminal, the victim opened the window and flagged down Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) personnel for help.

The police report said that as Zacarias, who was carrying her 3-year-old child, was about to alight, Vibar moved the car forward. As a result, Zacarias injured her foot.

Driver detained

The MMDA enforcers took the two to the Pasay City police station where the Grab driver ended up being detained. But Zacarias was allowed to leave after Vibar did not file countercharges against her.

“I think it was just a misunderstanding,” Olmedillo said. “They had gotten each other riled up. It was a collision of pride.”

Grab sanctioned around 500 of its drivers on April 30 after receiving numerous complaints from passengers. — By: Matthew Reysio-Cruz, With reports from Yvin Borondia and Starlene Portillo