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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A married couple is suing Uber Technologies Inc., alleging a driver for the ride-hailing company stabbed them after one of the plaintiffs vomited in her car in 2022.
The Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit filed by Lilit Hakobyan and Khachatur Aspoyan alleges assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and negligent hiring, retention, supervision and training. The plaintiffs, parents of three children, seek unspecified compensatory and punitive damages.
An Uber representative did not reply to a request for comment on the suit brought Friday.
According to the complaint, the couple were being driven home last Sept. 25 after a night out with friends when Hakobyan became nauseous during the trip and vomited in the vehicle's back seat.
The plaintiffs apologized and offered to pay the Uber driver to clean the vehicle, but the driver instead "became extremely aggressive" and refused to take pair home, the suit states.
"Plaintiffs protested and begged the driver take them to their destination and ensured that the driver would be adequately compensated for her troubles," according to the suit.
Rather than de-escalate the situation, the driver took out a knife and stabbed her passengers multiple times and both needed medical care, the suit states.
Hakobyan and Aspoyan continue to suffer from permanent skin scarring as well as emotional distress and loss of self-esteem and have been unable to performing daily activities and obtain "the full enjoyment of life," the suit states.