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An immigrant who entered the country illegally and worked as a rideshare driver was arrested in Maryland on rape charges involving a teenage girl, as authorities warn of other potential victims after it was revealed he was arrested for similar crimes in New York.
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he → sign → York
Abdoulaye Dia, 36, a rideshare driver with the company Empower, was arrested Wednesday after a teenage girl reported he raped her in a parking lot the day before, according to the Montgomery County Department of Police.
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he → arrest → Police
The girl, whose age was not disclosed but is under 18, told officers at a local hospital that the driver took her to a lot in Silver Spring, which is outside of Washington, DC, and assaulted her.
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which → disclose → her
Officers identified him through information obtained from the rideshare app and arrested him nearby in Lanham.
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Officers → identify → Lanham
'Based on the circumstances of the investigation, detectives are concerned there may be other victims,' the department said.
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department → base → investigation
Dia has been charged with first-degree rape, kidnapping, second-degree assault and third-degree sex offense.
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Dia → charge → rape
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) later told Fox News that Dia is a citizen of Guinea and was arrested in New York in June for similar charges.
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Dia → tell → charges
The department added that Dia entered the US illegally through Arizona in December of 2023.
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Dia → add → 2023
Abdoulaye Dia, 36, has been accused of raping an underage girl in a parking lot.
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Dia → accuse → lot
He faces charges of first-degree rape, kidnapping, second-degree assault and third-degree sex offense
The alleged victim identified Dia to police as an Empower rideshare driver.
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victim → face → driver
The company said in a statement that he passed an extensive background check (file photo)
In that case, Dia was charged with sexual abuse by forcible compulsion, forcible touching of the sexual/intimate parts of another person, injuring a child under 17 and sexual abuse without consent.
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Dia → say → consent
The case records have not been made public due to the nature of the charges.
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records → make → charges
A spokesperson from the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office told local ABC affiliate WJLA that their office requested Dia be held on bond, but a judge ordered him out on supervised release.
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judge → tell → release
Empower said in a statement to the Daily Mail that the company does not employ or contract drivers.
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company → say → drivers
'Drivers using our software are our customers.
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Drivers → use → software
They set their own rates and get 100% of their fares and pay Empower for access to our software,' the statement said.
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statement → set → software
Empower added that they conducted a background check, sex offender check, driving record check, Social Security trace and global watchlist search using the same company that Uber and Lyft do on Dia on July 16, but no incidents came up.
'
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incidents → add → July
The Montgomery County Police Department reached out to Empower about this incident.
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Department → reach → incident
Empower, as is our policy, asked law enforcement what Empower could do to assist their investigation and immediately provided all information requested,' the company said.
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company → ask → information
Empower is a rideshare alternative to Uber and Lyft where drivers set their own rates and pocket 100 percent of the fare.
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drivers → set → fare
Dia was arrested by the Montgomery County Department of Police in Gaithersburg, Maryland, on Wednesday (Pictured: File photo of the police department)
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Dia → arrest → department
Empower does not offer services to minors, according to their website.
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Empower → offer → website
Uber allows teens ages 13-17 to ride without a guardian with permission in select cities.
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Uber → allow → cities
Lyft also allows unaccompanied minors under Lyft Teen rides.
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Lyft → allow → rides
The circumstances that led to the alleged assault in Maryland have not been shared.
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that → lead → Maryland
Dia appeared in court on Thursday and was ordered to remain behind bars without bail, according to records.
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Dia → appear → records
It does not appear that he has retained an attorney or entered a plea in the charges against him.
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he → appear → him
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has not indicated whether it will issue a detainer against Dia or deport him.
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it → indicate → him
The Daily Mail has reached out to ICE, DHS and the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office for comment and more information.
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Mail → reach → comment
The Aporia
