NEW DELHI -- A Delhi Court on Tuesday convicted Uber cab driver Shiv Kumar Yadav for raping a 25-year-old executive in his taxi on December 5, 2014.
The survivor, who got into the cab around 11 pm to travel from Vasant Vihar to her residence in north Delhi's Inderlok area, dosed off during the ride. The prosecution argued that Yadav drove the cab to an isolated spot, raped the woman, and threatened to kill her if she complained to the police.
Additional Sessions Judge Kaveri Baweja found Yadav, who is in his early thirties, guilty of rape, kidnapping, assault and criminal intimidation.
Arguments for the quantum of punishment will be heard on October 22.
Last month, the Supreme Court called for the Uber cab rape case to be fast-tracked, and set aside the Delhi High Court order which allowed Yadav to re-examine 13 prosecution witnesses including the victim.
After he was arrested on December 7, the police revealed that Yadav was a serial sexual offender, who was out on bail in a 2013 rape case in Mainpuri, Uttar Pradesh, and he was also arrested in a rape case in South Delhi's Mehrauli area in 2011.
Following the public uproar over the lax standards in place to check the background of cab drivers, Delhi banned Uber and other web-based taxi services, but these companies are once again operating in the capital.
“Sexual assault is a terrible crime and we’re pleased this driver has now been brought to justice," Uber India president Amit Jain said in a statement on Tuesday.
"Safety is a priority for Uber and we’ve made many improvements – in terms of new technology, enhanced background checks and better 24/7 customer support – as a result of the lessons we learned from this awful case,” he said.
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