Uber passenger assaults driver, steals and crashes car

An intoxicated Uber passenger assaulted the driver, then stole and crashed his car in Tigard late Saturday.

Collin Lyle, 31, was arrested and charged with DUII, Unauthorized Use of a Motor Vehicle, Reckless Endangering and Intimidation. He was lodged in the Washington County Jail.

The driver was not injured. He was not immediately identified.

According to the Tigard Police Department, at 11:20 p.m. on Feb. 6, police were notified that a suspect had stolen a vehicle from the parking lot of a 7-Eleven located 12045 S.W. Hall Blvd. in Tigard. An officer arrived within minutes and spoke with the owner of the stolen vehicle, who said he was an Uber driver and had an intoxicated passenger in his vehicle.

The driver said that he had picked up the suspect in Portland and was heading to a Tigard location. The suspect had been verbally abusive, which then escalated to physical contact.

The driver turned into the 7-Eleven parking lot to get help after the suspect began to interfere with his ability to control his vehicle. When the victim stopped and went into the business, the suspect drove-off with the victim's vehicle.

Witnesses later told police the suspect drove over a curb and down a dirt slope when he exited the parking lot.

A short time later, Tigard police received a call of an intoxicated driver who crashed into a curb near the intersection of Sattler and Parkland Streets in Tigard. Evidence at the scene led police to a residence nearby, where the suspect was taken into custody.