A man, who was posing as a rideshare driver, was on the lookout for inebriated women at renowned Miami nightclubs to sexually assault them. Yadir Alejandro Gongora, 39, was apprehended on Saturday in connection with two distinct incidents. He is currently facing accusations of sexual battery and kidnapping. He is currently being detained at the Metrowest Detention Center without parole.
In August 2023, a 22-year-old woman entered the City of Miami Police Department and informed the investigators that she had been sexually assaulted. However, she was unable to recall the circumstances of the assault. According to a report, the woman and two of her colleagues had departed for a night of drinking, utilizing an Uber to reach Candela, an establishment located in Brickell.
The battery of her phone ran out later in the outing, and she was unable to locate her companions. According to the report, she chose to exit the building and recalls that she found herself in a vehicle, although she was unable to recollect how she had entered. At one juncture, she was sexually assaulted by a man while another man operated the vehicle.
According to the report, the woman awoke nearly five hours later while still in the vehicle. One of the males then directed her to exit the vehicle at a Publix, which is situated at 134 SW 13th Street, according to the report.
The tavern was situated only two minutes from the grocery store. In May, the police were directed to Gongora by information that was redacted in the report that was submitted to the court this week. Gongora maintained that he was unfamiliar with the woman and had never encountered her before when he was questioned by the police on Friday.
According to the report, Gongora did, however, indicate that he provided transportation to individuals from clubs in the Wynwood and downtown Miami locations, with a particular emphasis on Club Space and E11EVEN Miami. Gongora stated that he was employed by a rideshare app from 2017 to 2019, but he subsequently began transporting regular consumers who contacted him.
Is There a Consistent Pattern of Behavior?
A second report confirms that a 21-year-old woman disclosed that she had been sexually assaulted comparably one month later, in September 2023. The woman stated that she had been drinking and had become separated from her companions. Until she was dropped off in the vicinity of her residence on the 16800 block of Northwest 67th Avenue, she failed to recall the events of the previous evening.
According to the report, she was unable to recall whether she or a companion had ordered a rideshare. However, she stated that she last remembered being in the vicinity of 900 South Miami Avenue, which is approximately 30 minutes from her residence.
The woman stated that she observed that her underwear was in her purse, but her phone, wallet, and camera were absent. In May, Gongora was brought to the attention of the police as a result of information that was also redacted from the report. Once investigators were presented with a photograph of the victim, Gongora disclosed information that was redacted from the report.
These rideshare incidents are not the first time Gongora has been accused of sexual assault. Gongora was prosecuted for larceny by sudden snatching and sexual battery in October after police allege that he impersonated an Uber driver and sexually assaulted a woman he had picked up from a Wynwood nightclub.
In May, he was sentenced to two years of probation on a charge of robbery. As of Monday evening, the specifics of the plea agreement remain uncertain.