UPDATE ON MARCH 23: The taxi driver who was fired after his employer observed him on video assaulting a passenger reportedly showed up at the victim's house afterwards with flowers and an apology.
According to the arrest report for Abdul Based, the victim initially passed out in the taxi's back seat. At some point, Based woke her up and told her to get in the front seat.
After she passes out again, Based supposedly can be seen on camera groping the victim's vaginal area for several minutes.
The taxi company called police and suspended Based immediately in the company's computer system after seeing the video.
When the police contacted the victim, she told them that Based had been at her house that day. She was very upset and told police that she didn't remember what happened.
The victim told police that she had been at a hotel-casino on the Las Vegas Strip and had consumed several alcoholic drinks.
The last thing she remembered was not feeling well and sitting on a couch and drinking water.
When she woke up the next morning, she noticed her phone was missing and there was a $92 charge by Lucky Cab Company to her credit card. She also noticed a slight pain in her vaginal area.
During an interview with police, Based admitted that he touched the woman and said that he lost control of himself in the moment and knew he had made a mistake. He also said that it would have been okay if he was single. Based is married.
UPDATE ON MARCH 22: 13 Action News spoke with the suspect's managers who police say helped crack this case.
Reem Awad is one of the co-owners of Lucky Cab Company of Nevada.
"I'm actually happy that we were able to discover what had gone on," said Awad, "... She just called looking for belongings, and we probably would not have known what had happened unless we reviewed the video."
According to police, on March 8, a woman contacted the taxi company to report that she left a phone in one of their cars. When company management began to investigate by reviewing surveillance video, they discovered the driver had sexually assaulted the female passenger while she was incapacitated. They immediately called the police.
The driver was fired. The Nevada Taxi Cab Authority says his permit has been confiscated as well.
Awad said the company followed every protocol throughout the hiring process. She said Lucky Cab, like every other company, relies on the Taxi Cab Authority.
"They do go through an extensive process of background checks," she said.
Based was taken into custody without incident on March 17 and is facing one count of sexual assault. Las Vegas police released his mug shot Wednesday.
Based previously worked for Yellow Checker Star. They did not want to comment on the incident.
ORIGINAL STORY
LAS VEGAS (KTNV) -- A local cab company says it immediately fired a driver after they say he sexually assaulted a passenger.
Lucky Cab says the assault was caught on camera inside the taxi. Once discovered, employees immediately called police, who arrested the driver, identified as Abdul Based. He was fired March 9.
A Lucky Cab representative says the driver passed all the background checks when he was hired in January and had worked for another cab company, Yellow Checker Star, before being hired.
The driver is due in court Wednesday morning.
