Lyft Driver Arrested in Homestead After Passenger Reports Assault

Homestead police arrested Kevin Narvaez Cruz, 28, on November 2 after investigating a passenger’s account of an October 31 ride from West Perrine. The woman said the driver used a phone translation app to speak with her, offered her money for sex and repeatedly touched her thigh despite her objections. She also told investigators he masturbated during the ride and exposed himself as she got out of the car.

Police said the woman saw Cruz follow her to her upstairs apartment. As she unlocked the door, he allegedly pressed against her and tried to get inside; she pushed him away, and investigators said his feet crossed the threshold. She told police he later blocked her as she tried to reach a neighbor’s apartment, then ran off. Officers documented a bruise on her hip, and a neighbor’s doorbell camera captured Cruz following her toward the apartment, police said.

Investigators identified Cruz using vehicle records and a comparison of photographs, then arrested him at his home after surveillance. During questioning, he denied exposing himself and claimed she made the first physical move and said they kissed, though he gave differing accounts of where that happened, police said. He faced charges of entering a property by force or threat, sexual battery of an older or disabled person, unlawful restraint, exposing himself indecently, and battery.