Grandma Uber driver in Colorado Springs fought back and survived vicious attack by rider

A 63-year-old Uber driver from Colorado Springs, Colorado, says she lived to tell about a vicious assault by a rider because she fought back.

The victim, Lorraine, asked KCNC-TV to conceal her last name. She also said she wanted to come forward to encourage others to fight back against attackers.

Why was she attacked?

The attack happened around 4:27 a.m. Monday after the grandmother picked up an Uber fare in the 500 block of East Dale Street near downtown, according to a Colorado Springs police report. The man entered her car and asked her to wait for another passenger.

Lorraine waited about 10 minutes and then asked him to find another ride. At that time, the man allegedly began hitting and biting her, reports state.

“He got my lip. He bashed me in the mouth,” Lorraine told the TV station. “This tooth is shoved up in and twisted. He split the skin like a boxer. Everyone tells me my ear is really swollen.”

The police report states the suspect “attempted to sexually assault her, striking her and biting her several times, causing significant injuries. During the assault, the victim was able to exit her vehicle, which the suspect then took and fled the scene.”

After the attack, Lorraine spent seven hours in a hospital and needed stitches, the TV station reported.

Police reportedly told Lorraine she survived because she fought back.

“If I can inspire anyone else to fight back, keep fighting back or just prepare yourself because it does happen and don’t be afraid to report it,” Lorraine said.

Was the suspect caught?

Raydrian Tyree Scott, 22, was arrested Wednesday on charges of aggravated sexual assault, second-degree assault, robbery, aggravated motor vehicle theft and failure to register as a sex offender. He was allegedly still in possession of Lorraine’s car, a white 2011 Chevy Cruze.

Scott was also arrested on several unrelated misdemeanor warrants. They include domestic violence charges based in Pueblo, Colorado, and a non-extraditable warrant out of Alabama, for failing to register as a sex offender.