PALO ALTO (KRON) — Palo Alto police have arrested an Uber driver accused of groping a woman passenger and then trying to return to her home later in the night, police said.
The sexual battery happened on Sunday morning at around 12:27 a.m. in the area of Los Trancos Road and Alpine Road, police said. Police determined the victim, a woman in her 40s, and her husband had taken an Uber and were dropped off at their home just after 11 p.m.
A short time later, they realized they had left a cellphone in the Uber and called the driver to ask him to bring it back, according to police. When he arrived, the woman went outside to get back her phone.
After she got her phone, the suspect kissed the victim and then groped her breast, according to police. The woman pushed the suspect and then ran back inside. The driver then drove away, police said.
The woman reported the incident to Uber.
About an hour later, the victim got a call from the suspect saying that he was outside her home, police said. That is when she told him to go away, and she immediately called the police.
When officers responded, the suspect was gone.
The suspect has been identified as 35-year-old Pedro Liborio-Anorve of Redwood City. Police arrested him at his home in the 3400 block of Michael Drive just before 4 a.m.
Liborio-Anorve was booked into the Santa Clara County Main Jail for felony sexual battery and misdemeanor stalking.
Uber has issued the following statement:
“The behavior described is disturbing and is not tolerated on the Uber platform. The driver partner no longer has access to the Uber app. We have been working in cooperation with police and will continue to assist with the investigation.”
Uber has also provided details on passenger safety here: https://newsroom.uber.com/details-on-safety/