A South Florida father is taking legal action against Uber after, he said, the man who sexually assaulted his 12-year-old daughter used the ride hailing service to facilitate the victim’s transport to and from a motel.
Terry Moore and his attorney, Bradford Cohen, spoke with 7News on Thursday.
Back in December of 2023, Moore said, his daughter got in an Uber ride just outside the family’s home while he slept.
Unbeknownst to his daughter, who is on the autism spectrum, she was being targeted by a sexual predator, Moore said.
“My 12-year-old daughter was sexually assaulted,” he said.
Moore said he awoke later that night.
“I woke up and noticed she wasn’t here. [I] immediately called North Miami Police Department to report a missing person,” he said.
Police soon responded to the home. Moore said detectives launched an investigation right away and informed him about what they uncovered.
“[My daughter] was able go on to social media, which is Instagram, and communicate with this guy,” he said.
That man, who was in his late 20s at the time, sent the Uber ride, Moore and Cohen said.
“We found that she was dropped off at a hotel room,” said Moore.
“Some seedy hotel, dropping her off, and then another Uber picking her up from that seedy hotel, taking her back home at all hours of the evening,” said Cohen.
In the civil lawsuit they filed, Cohen and Moore said Uber should have safety protocols in place to flag rides sent to children to prevent incidents like this one.
The victim’s family said that by the time police figured out she was taken to a Motel Seven, she had been Ubered home.
After being treated medically, the family learned she’d been a victim of rape.
Authorities now list the suspect, 30-year old Khori Pace, as a sex battery suspect, according to this police summary.
“We need to find the individual,” said Cohen.
But Pace was neither arrested nor charged for the crime.
“Where is this individual? Why is he not being held accountable?” said Cohen.
North Miami Police said they’re investigating the matter, but did not offer any additional information.
“Questions need to be asked,” said Cohen.
When asked how his daughter was able to get into an Uber without his knowledge, Moore replied, “Well, we all have to go to sleep.”
“Sexual predators find a way to get access to our children,” Moore continued. “It’s very difficult. It hasn’t been easy at all, and it’s not going to be easy for a long time, because this affects the family for a lifetime.”