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Former Uber driver accused of assaulting Scottsdale teen

Published  January 1, 2016 4:57pm MST
Danielle Miller's Reports
FOX 10 Phoenix

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. - A former Phoenix Uber driver was arrested for sexual assault on a 16-year-old girl. The incident happened several months ago, but this man was just arrested last week.

Scottsdale police tell us it took this long to arrest the man, because since the incident, they've been going through the evidence, such as cell phone records and DNA. Last week, they found a positive match and arrested 53-year-old James Richard Stough II.

Sgt. Ben Hoster says on June 1, 2015, the 16-year-old called for an Uber to take her to her home in north Scottsdale from her Phoenix high school. They say Stough is the Uber driver who picked her up.

"While they were driving to her house, they had a conversation about her injured ankle. The Uber driver, prior to getting to her home, pulled into a vacant community where homes are being constructed, stopped the car and then got into the back seat with her and told her he was a massage therapist and he was going to massage her ankle," explained Hoster.

Hoster adds that Stough then rubbed the teen's ankle and continued to touch her.

"He later told her he needed to work on her hip and he moved his hands up to her hip and at one point, he inappropriately touched her."

Hoster says the girl then said she needed to get home and Stough stopped and took her to her home. She ran inside in fear and told her father, who was able to get the driver back to their home and called the police.

"Stough was interviewed and he denied all accusations that the victim had given us, and through DNA evidence, we were able to arrest him last week."

Stough is being charged with kidnapping, assault and sexual conduct with a minor.

We went to his home for a comment, but he couldn't be reached.

We reached out to Uber and they tell us Stough was immediately fired after they became aware of the incident. They say there are several safety features on the app to hopefully prevent something like this from happening and the safety of their riders and drivers is a top priority.