Vietnamese tourist 'raped and robbed' by ride-hailing app driver and accomplice

A Vietnamese tourist was allegedly raped and robbed by a ride-hailing app driver and his accomplice.

The holidaymaker, 32, had booked the suspect, 37, to fetch her from a housing estate in Paranaque City in Metro Manila, the Philippines at around 4am local time on September 5.

However, instead of taking her to her hotel, the cabbie was said to have driven the tourist around the city in circles. He then picked up another male passenger who allegedly threatened the Vietnamese with a knife before robbing and raping her.

Police said the suspects dropped off the disheveled woman along an empty street in Paranaque City, where she filed a report with the cops in the notoriously crime-ridden Southeast Asian country.

Police Major Hazel Asilo, Chief Public Information Officer of the Southern Police District, said: 'The suspect drove her around the city, then his accomplice boarded the car.

'After her belongings were stolen, the Vietnamese victim was molested. So before she left the car, she was robbed and raped.'

The suspects reportedly stole 35,000 PHP in cash and the woman's phone.

Police caught the fugitive cabbie in Cabuyao City, Laguna province, some 23 miles away from Paranaque, in a follow-up operation on September 7.

They said they tracked him down as his car's licence plate was visible on CCTV footage. He had also shown his driver's licence at the security guard booth while entering the gated subdivision to pick up the Vietnamese passenger.

His vehicle was seized and the woman's phone was recovered. Cops also confiscated a pocket knife, a gun, and a loaded magazine from the driver.

Police spokesman Hazel added: 'He admitted to what they did. This is their modus. Although they've already done it several times, they were never caught because no one filed a report.

'We are still checking if they have other victims. We are waiting for them to come forward, to see if the suspects are targetting foreign nationals. We are identifying other possible victims who might have been scared of reporting to the police.'

The taxi driver claimed he was not involved in the rape. The Vietnamese visitor corroborated his statement.

Police said they now know the identity of the other suspect, whom the cabbie allegedly confessed was his neighbour.