My Uber driver tried to kidnap me

I (21M) was in New York for the evening visiting some friends. I didn’t know the city well, so I decided to take an Uber back to my hotel late at night. At first, everything seemed normal. The driver was quiet but polite.

But about halfway through the ride, I noticed he wasn’t following the route I expected. I tried to speak up and ask if we were going the right way, but he just said he knew a faster shortcut. I started feeling uneasy, so I pulled out my phone and pretended to call someone, hoping that might scare him off or at least make him think someone was aware of where I was.

When he didn’t change course, I quietly told him to stop the car. He ignored me and kept driving. My heart was racing. I didn’t know what to do, but I remembered I could hit the emergency button on the Uber app. I managed to do that without him noticing. Within minutes, the driver pulled over, and I jumped out and ran to a nearby store.

I called the police and reported what happened. The whole experience left me shaken. I never thought something like that could happen to me, especially just trying to get back to my hotel.

I’m still processing what happened and trying to not let the fear take over. I just wanted to share this because if it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone. Please be careful out there, especially when you’re alone or in a new place.