inDrive Reinstates Driver’s Account After Clearing Him of Robbery Accusation

Ride-hailing company inDrive has reinstated the account of its driver, Mr James Oluwatosin, after clearing him of robbery accusations made by a passenger. This comes after a viral social media post created tension and confusion over the truth of the claims.

According to inDrive’s Instagram statement on Friday, the company conducted an investigation and found Mr Oluwatosin not guilty. They said his account will be made active again. After reviewing the passenger’s statement, inDrive found no clear proof to support the robbery accusations.

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The company said, “Our team quickly reached out to both the driver and the passenger to understand what happened. After the first check, we found no contradictions in the driver’s story and decided to keep his account active. Later, we contacted the passenger and carefully looked at her statement. We found no clear evidence to support the claims against the driver.”

Before this, many social media users had called on inDrive to do a thorough investigation and clear Mr Oluwatosin’s name. The driver has been with inDrive for over three years and holds a good rating of 3.86 from passengers.

InDrive also praised Mr Oluwatosin for his commitment over the years, stating, “Based on our review, we found no clear signs of any wrongdoing by the driver. Mr James Oluwatosin has been with our platform for more than three years and keeps a high rating. We advise passengers to check driver ratings when booking rides.”

The issue started with a viral post on X (formerly Twitter) on Wednesday warning people against using Mr Oluwatosin’s service. The post accused him of pretending his car broke down during rides so a gang could rob passengers. This post quickly spread across Facebook, WhatsApp, X, and other platforms, raising fears about the driver.

The original post claimed, “If you see him after booking a ride, cancel immediately. He pretends his car has a problem and then stops so his gang can rob you.”

The passenger making the claim said the car broke down along their journey and street touts took advantage by asking for money. She also said, “All door handles except the driver’s side were broken. I had to climb out through the driver’s door while he was pretending to fix a light and making a phone call.”

However, many people questioned the truth of this story. Some said touts in Lagos often exploit situations like car troubles to extort money from passengers.

The inDrive driver’s family spoke up hours later. A relative said on X that the claims were false and no robbery took place. The relative said, “The driver is my uncle. The whole thing happened Sunday night, but nobody was robbed. They were just surrounded by touts, but no one took anything.”

Mr Oluwatosin himself shared an audio clip in Yoruba where he explained the situation. He said his car had a problem one Sunday night and he called a mechanic to fix it. While waiting, some local boys came asking for money. He refused to pay them.

He added, “I don’t know these boys, never met them before. The passenger got down and spoke with the boys, trying to stop them from robbing us.”

Following the viral post, the Lagos State Police joined in. They asked both the driver and passenger to come forward and share their statements to help settle the matter.

InDrive was also criticized for quickly suspending Mr Oluwatosin’s account without a full investigation. But after checking the case, the company cleared the driver and reinstated his account.

They said, “We looked closely at the driver’s side and found no inconsistencies. We are still in contact with the passenger and committed to fairness and safety for everyone.”

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This incident highlights how fast information spreads on social media and the impact it can have on people’s reputations. The story circulated quickly on platforms like X, WhatsApp, TikTok, and Facebook before the facts were fully checked.

Ultimately, inDrive reinstates the driver’s account after clearing him of robbery accusations, proving the importance of thorough investigation before passing judgment. The company encourages passengers to consider driver ratings and to trust verified information when using ride-hailing services.

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