Texas
Texas Lyft driver sues rideshare company, hospital after passenger choked him with his own seatbelt
A Lyft driver who says a passenger attacked him in Texas by choking him with his own seatbelt as he was driving him to his destination has filed a lawsuit against Lyft and the hospital where he picked up the passenger.
Driver Kehinde Ayoola said staff at Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston requested the ride and helped the passenger to the vehicle in February of this year.
“He pulled my seatbelt and wrapped it around my neck, choking me. He was trying to kill me,” Ayoola told Fox 26.
The passenger, Ramiro Vella, was charged with Aggravated Assault in connection with the attack.
LYFT DRIVER SAYS PASSENGER CHOKED HIM WITH HIS OWN SEATBELT IN TEXAS: ‘HE WAS TRYING TO KILL ME’
A Lyft driver who says a passenger choked him with his own seatbelt filed a lawsuit against Lyft and the hospital where he picked up the passenger. (Getty)
Ayoola explained the impact the violent attack has had on him since the incident, noting that he is now fearful of falling victim to another attack.
“Just like we’re sitting here, if someone tries to pass behind me, I’m always, so scared, you know. I see it always. Every day,” he said, adding that replays in his over and over again.
He said he has not picked up passengers since the incident because of his fears. He had been a rideshare driver for seven years.
“Because I’m always scared. Even if my grandson is sitting behind me in the car, I’m scared,” Ayoola said.
Ayoola said when he arrived at the hospital to pick up Vella, he observed the man standing with three hospital workers as he was fidgeting and behaving strangely.
TEXAS POLICE DEPARTMENT TO INTRODUCE AUTONOMOUS DRONE PILOT PROGRAM: ‘AN EYE IN THE SKY’
The passenger, Ramiro Vella, was charged with Aggravated Assault in connection with the attack. (Getty)
“When I picked up that passenger in February, I talked to the staff, the Memorial Hermann staff,” he recalled. “I said ‘Hey what’s going on? Is this guy OK?’ They told me, they said, ‘Oh yes, it’s okay.’ I even asked the security guard, and he said, ‘yes, it’s okay.’”
Shortly after Vella entered his car, he started talking to himself before beating his chest and, at one point, slid over in the backseat to the seat behind Ayoola. The passenger then grabbed Ayoola’s seatbelt and wrapped it around the driver’s neck, according to Ayoola.
Ayoola attempted to put his fingers between his neck and the seatbelt, and was unable to unfasten his seatbelt. Vella then used his arm to put Ayoola in a chokehold.
The driver pulled his car over to the side of the road, and Vella kicked the back window until the frame popped out before kicking a dent into the back of the vehicle and opening the trunk, Ayoola said.
Investigators said Vella then ran to a house and began yelling and attempting to enter. The homeowner called 911 and Vella was arrested.
Ayoola said he has not picked up passengers since the incident because of his fears of another attack. (Photo Illustration by Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket )
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Ayoola is “an innocent, hardworking man that was simply trying to complete a Lyft journey that was ordered, supervised, and called for by Memorial Hermann Hospital, and he ended up being attacked,” Ayoola’s Attorney, Osayuki Ogbeidet, told Fox 26.
“He expressed his concerns to Memorial Hermann staff, and they reassured him that Ramiro Vella would be OK,” Ogbeide added.
Ogbeide said Ayoola has experienced “very special damages. Not just loss of wages, not just medical bills, but his whole life turned upside down.”
Vella’s next court date is scheduled for Sept. 25.
In just a few days, the Java House Grand Prix of Arlington will take place. Bill Miller, President and General Manager of the event, says this race has been in the works for two years.
“We started, you know, conceptually, how do you design a racetrack on what are city streets and around the property,” said Miller.
Miller says they are on schedule, adding that it takes crews almost a month to set everything up.
“The track is 2.73 miles, 14 turns. You’re going to have top speeds on Randol Mill right behind us here, where the cars are going to be going 180mph,” said Miller.
Drivers will race through the Arlington Entertainment District, going past Globe Life Field and AT&T Stadium.
“We’ve now come to Randol Mill, and we’re in the area of the track that we call the horseshoe. This is going to be one of the more technical spots of the track. Drivers will be just hugging around this turn and going probably 90 to 100, 100 plus miles an hour,” said Miller.
Miller says they’ve carefully planned every little detail with the hopes of giving an expected crowd of about 80,000 people the best experience.
“You will feel the cars and that speed as they transition through this year’s area. It’s going to be pretty awesome,” said Miller.
Tickets are still available. CBS News Texas will be live at the race events this Friday.
GREENVILLE, S.C. — On Sunday afternoon, Texas women’s basketball and South Carolina will reunite in the SEC Tournament’s championship game.
South Carolina is looking to win its 10th SEC Tournament championship since 2015. Having been the Big 12’s best in 2022 and 2024, Texas is playing for its third conference tournament title under head coach Vic Schaefer.
Stay tuned for live updates.
Texas vs. South Carolina: Live updates, highlights
The Longhorns scored 20 of this game’s first 25 points and will take a 1-point lead into the second quarter. Leading the Longhorns was sophomore forward Justice Carlton, who outscored the Gamecocks by herself. While scoring 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, Carlton also recorded three rebounds and three assists.
Carlton’s quick start came less than 24 hours after she played just four minutes in the second half of an 85-68 win over Ole Miss.
South Carolina shot just 4-for-13 from the field over this afternoon’s first 10 minutes. Over its first 14 games against ranked teams this season, South Carolina had outscored its opponents by an average of 4.2 points in the first quarter.
Fueled by Justice Carlton, Texas has jumped out to a 14-0 lead in South Carolina. Carlton already has scored six points, and the sophomore forward assisted teammate Breya Cunningham on the game’s first basket and set up another UT score by drawing an offensive foul. Carlton has also recorded a steal.
Texas has made its first seven shots this afternoon. South Carolina has called an early timeout after a start that included five turnovers and just one field-goal attempt.
Where: Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C.
PROVO — Robert Wright III wasn’t one of the four seniors honored in BYU’s regular-season finale Saturday night.
But if it was his final time playing in the Marriott Center — and in an era of the transfer portal that opens up and NBA-like free agency every offseason, you can never count that out — then the former All-Big 12 freshman at Baylor was going to make it memorable.
How about a top-10 victory, for good measure?
Wright scored 23 of his 27 points in the second half to go with six rebounds and two assists; and Kennard Davis Jr. drained the final go-ahead 3-pointer with 1 minuted, 34 seconds remaining as BYU snapped a three-game losing skid with a 82-76 win over No. 10 Texas Tech in front of a sold-out crowd at the Marriott Center.
AJ Dybantsa added 21 points, six rebounds and four assists in what most assume to be the future NBA draft lottery pick’s final game in Provo, and Davis finished with 16 points for the Cougars (21-10, 9-9 Big 12).
Christian Anderson poured in 23 points, four rebounds and nine assists for Texas Tech; and Donovan Atwell added 23 points and six rebounds for the Red Raiders (22-9, 12-6 Big 12).
Jaylen Petty scored 14 points for Texas Tech, which made 16 3-pointers — but just 4-of-16 in the second half.
That’s when Wright to work, converting 7-of-10 field goals and all nine of his free-throw attempts as BYU rallied from as much as a 13-point deficit in the first half to help the Cougars to their first win over Texas Tech since Dec. 17, 1993.
With little to play for in the Big 12 Tournament beyond pride and a sendoff for four seniors, including injured star Richie Saunders, Texas Tech opened the regular-season finale with more of it.
Anderson dropped in five 3-pointers and six assists in the first half, and the Red Raiders shot 12-of-19 from deep to lead by as much as 13 before the break.
After a short run from BYU, Donovan Atwell hit Texas Tech’s eighth triple out of a media timeout, and Anderson added another of the Red Raiders’ 12 first-half 3-pointers to stretch the lead back to 37-27 en route to a 46-38 halftime advantage.
Davis had 13 points, including three of BYU’s five 3-pointers before the break; and Dybantsa added 10 points, three rebounds and two assists on 4-of-14 shooting for the Cougars before halftime.
BYU didn’t commit a turnover until Josiah Moseley’s steal with 15:52 remaining, and Wright capped a 13-6 run out of halftime to bring the Cougars all the way back within 52-51 a minute later.
Buoyed by a defense — there’s that word that seemed far-too-unfamiliar at times during the recent stretch of three-straight losses, or eight in the past 11 games — that held the Red Raiders to 2-of-6 shooting from the perimeter, Dybantsa converted a 3-point play to give BYU its first lead of the half, 58-57 with 11:23 remaining.
Wright scored 6 straight points, Dybantsa added 4 in a row, and Keita capped a 14-2 run that lifted the Cougars to their largest lead of the game, 74-66, with a 14-2 run with 4:42 remaining.
This story will be updated.
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