Blazing row with driver over pick-up point ends with father, 54, and his daughter, 25, refusing to leave vehicle for hours on end. Police end overnight ‘occupation’ of ride-share car and detain duo who have been accused of urinating in vehicle and spraying perfume to hide smell. — SCMP
A father and daughter who staged a bizarre 32-hour “occupation” of a ride-sharing vehicle during which one or both of them urinated inside the car have been detained by the authorities in eastern China.
The strange events – which have shocked many people online – unfolded after the pair had an argument with the driver over the location of their pick-up point.
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On May 20, Hangzhou police in Zhejiang province reported that the duo had been placed under seven-day administrative detention.
According to the report, the father, 54, and his daughter, 25, both surnamed Yu, refused to leave the car from 2pm on May 17 to 10pm the next day, after the driver, a woman, surnamed Wang, discontinued their order following a dispute.
Wang told local consumer watchdog programme, 1818 Golden Eye, that the pick-up point the passengers chose on the car-hailing app did not allow parking.
Due to the fact that it was raining heavily, Wang said she threw them an umbrella and asked them to walk to a new pick-up point several metres away.
However, Wang said the request irritated the pair, who began screaming at her before getting into the car. The screaming continued once they closed the doors.
Angered by this, Wang decided to end the service and drive them back to where they had originally set off, telling them: “I would rather die than drive you.”
The police were called but failed to persuade the pair to leave the car, so Wang drove them to her residential compound that night and went home leaving the car doors unlocked hoping they would be gone by the next morning.
However, Wang was shocked not only to find the pair were still in the car the next day, they had peed inside the vehicle and used perfume to cover the smell.
Wang drove them to a nearby police station, which, by ironic coincidence, is on a street called “Liu Xia”, which means “stay” in English.
The daughter told the consumer watchdog programme that they were determined not to leave and occupy the car until Wang completed their order, or paid them compensation amounting to 10 times the fare of nine yuan (RM5.87 or US$1.30).
“We are fighting for our legal rights,” she said.
The woman, who identified herself as a media worker from Shanghai, claimed Wang had thrown water at them as she showed reporters videos and a photo of a water splash which she said “would become viral”.
Wang said she was simply “washing her car”.
The police, who initially said they could not force the pair out of the car because there were no “physical conflicts”, eventually issued them with a summoning warrant after 32 hours, giving them no choice but to leave the vehicle.
Mainland social media applauded the police decision.
“They are terrible passengers. They should be blacklisted by the ride-sharing platform,” said one observer.
Another joked: “What if they also refuse to leave the police station after seven days?”
“It seems that the ride-sharing platform also has responsibilities, why let them choose a pick-up point that doesn’t allow parking?” said a third.
The ride-sharing platform, T3 Chuxing, said it will provide legal assistance to Wang, and help her recover her lost income. – South China Morning Post
