Police arrest Acton rideshare driver on kidnapping charge

A rideshare driver is facing a kidnapping charge after he allegedly trapped a woman inside his car Thursday night in Boston. 

The 47-year-old Acton resident, Kamal Essalak, was wanted on an outstanding warrant out of Boston Municipal Court for a kidnapping charge, and Acton police arrested him near 7323 Avalon Drive on Saturday, according to a news release. 

Investigators said the Thursday incident happened around 8:32 p.m. near 1139 Commonwealth Ave., where a woman had requested a ride from a common ridesharing service, and Essalak was reportedly her driver. 

The woman told police that when she got into his car, he began “behaving strangely” and she requested to be dropped off and let out of the vehicle. 

She told officers that as Essalak stopped the car and she attempted to open the door, she realized the child safety locks had been enabled on both back seat doors and she was trapped inside. 

“As the victim began to scream and bang on the glass in an attempt to draw attention to the unfolding situation, the suspect began to climb into the rear passenger area of the vehicle, laughing periodically,” Boston police said in the release. “The victim was able to quickly slide around the suspect, into the driver’s seat.” 

From there, officers said she unlocked the door and was able to exit the car.

Boston police urged anyone using ridesharing services to take a moment as they get into the vehicle they requested to see if the car’s child safety locks have been engaged. 

“On most modern cars and SUVs, these safety locks are located on the inside panel of the rear doors, below wherever the door latch mechanism is located,” officers said. “They are usually quite small and made of dark colored or black plastic making them difficult to see under darkened conditions.”

Officers assigned to Brighton took custody of Essalak on Saturday following his arrest and brought him back to the station for booking.

He is expected to be arraigned in Brighton District Court. 

Want to leave a comment?

Create an Account Or sign in to your account

To comment, please create a screen name in your profile

To comment, please verify your email address

Conversation

This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com