Uber admits mistakes, apologizes to sex assault victim

DALLAS – An internal investigation revealed an Uber driver accused of sexually assaulting a passenger never underwent a background check and was mistakenly granted driver status, according to the car service.

The results of the investigation were obtained by News 8 on Friday evening.

In a one-page letter to Dallas code compliance director Kris Sweckard, Uber Dallas general manager Leandre Johns said the company has conducted an "audit of all limo companies and livery drivers who use Uber in Dallas today."

The audit and review comes after the arrest of Uber driver Talal Chammout, 56, for sexual assault of a passenger on July 25.

That letter can be viewed at the end of this story, but it said, in part, "[Chammout] provided Uber with a fake City of Dallas license. The fact that his license was fake means he never underwent either a City of Dallas or Uber background check."

Johns said Chammout's account was marked "will not be driving" at that time. However, "on April 17, 2015, an Uber representative mistakenly granted Mr. Chammout access to Uber as a driver."

Uber said its audit included:

• A manual review of each City of Dallas limousine permit that has been provided by either owners or drivers as a means of identification when signing up to use Uber.
• A cross-check of the City's registered limousine drivers against our internal database to identify any abnormalities or incorrect information.
• A review to confirm that every driver or limo company owner in Dallas using the platform has been put through Uber's background check process.

A Dallas police detective testified at a hearing on Thursday regarding the sexual assault that the victim awoke with a large bump on the back of her head and scrapes on her knees the morning after being dropped off by an Uber driver.

According to the arrest warrant, the woman then received calls and texts from an unknown number and traced the calls back to her Uber ride receipt and someone named "Talal."

A Dallas County district judge increased the bond for Chammout from $100,000 to $250,000 after the hearing, based on the nature of the allegations and prior criminal convictions.

Chammout was not listed as an inmate in the Dallas County Jail as of Friday evening. He bonded out under conditions that included he "not leave the State of Texas" and "not to act as a driver or provided transportation," among others.

Uber says it will also take additional steps going forward to improve safety procedures in Dallas, including more spot checks to verify that identification and documents in their system are accurate and the creation of a new approval layer before drivers signing up to use Uber are allowed to accept rides.

Johns admitted on Friday evening Uber made mistakes.

"In this instance, we failed to live up to our own high standards, for which we are truly sorry," Johns said. "We are determined to learn from the mistakes that were made so we can do better in the future. Our thoughts are with the victim and her family."'

View the letter written to Sweckard below or here.