Lyft Driver Dodges Gunfire During Pasadena Robbery

A Lyft driver narrowly escaped gunfire as he fled from a robber in Pasadena early Sunday, police said.

The crime took place just before 7 a.m. when the driver arrived in the 800 block of North Oakland Avenue to pick up a patron, Pasadena police Lt. Marcia Taglioretti said.

The driver, an Inglewood man in his 20s, saw another man standing outside as he arrived in the neighborhood, she said.

The man got into a pickup truck and backed up, pulling alongside the victim and gesturing for him to roll down his window, according to Taglioretti.

Police said the man in the truck then pointed a handgun at the Lyft driver and demanded his water bottle, she said.

When the gunman proceeded to demand the rideshare driver’s wallet, the victim instead ducked down and began accelerating north along Oakland Avenue, according to the lieutenant.

“He immediately heard a gunshot and his driver-side window shattered,” she said. The victim was not hurt.

Police described the robber as a Latino man in his 40s, about 5 feet 9 inches tall and heavyset, with a bald head or very short hair. He wore a dark, baggy hooded sweatshirt with an unknown sports logo, along with baggy pants or sweatpants.

He drove a dark-colored, older-model pickup truck fitted with a camper shell, Taglioretti added.

Anyone with information can reach the Pasadena Police Department at (626) 744-4501. Tips may also be submitted anonymously to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.