Texas Uber driver shot to death by passenger who feared she was being kidnapped

An Uber driver was shot dead by a passenger in West Texas who made a grave mistake in believing that she was being kidnapped and taken to Mexico, authorities say.

Phoebe Copas, a 48-year-old woman from Tomkinsville, Kentucky, has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of El Paso Uber driver Daniel Piedra Garcia, 52, according to Associated Press.



On June 16, Copas was visiting her boyfriend in El Paso when she ordered a ride from Uber. Piedra was driving Copas to a location in southeast El Paso when the car reportedly crashed. Following the crash, Copas shot Piedra, took a photo of him, and texted it to her boyfriend before calling 911, police said.

According to the affidavit, the car did not crash "in close proximity of a bridge, port of entry or other area with immediate access to travel into Mexico," and police determined that, "The investigation does not support that a kidnapping took place or that Piedra was veering from Copas' destination."

Copas was originally charged with aggravated assault but the charge was upgraded to first-degree murder after Piedra was taken off life support and died, the outlet reports.

Piedra's niece, Didi Lopez, told the El Paso Times that Piedra was "a hardworking man and really funny."

"He was never in a bad mood. He was always the one that, if he saw you in a bad mood, he'd come over and try to lift you up," she added.

Copas is being held on a $1.5 million bond and Lopez said that "I wish she would've spoken up, asked questions, not acted on impulse and make a reckless decision, because not only did she ruin our lives, but she ruined her life, too."

"We just want justice for him. That's all we're asking," Lopez said.

A GoFundMe campaign has been set up by Piedra's family.