HOUSTON — A Houston couple was sentenced to years in federal prison for beating an Uber driver and stealing his car in 2022. The violent, unprompted attack was caught on video.
Frank Lewis Blanco and Destinee Guerrero both pleaded guilty to the charge of carjacking with the intent to cause death or serious bodily harm earlier this summer.
A federal judge sentenced Blanco, 28, to 120 months in prison. Guerrero, 24, was sentenced to 72 months. Both of them will have to serve three years of supervised release once their time is served. They had been facing a sentence of up to 15 years in prison.
The driver didn't want to be identified but KHOU 11 spoke with him after the incident.
"The guy especially, the guy started kicking my face like it was a football for him," he said. "I couldn't do anything. I was trying to defend myself. I just couldn't do it."
The victim spoke during the hearing. He said he has lasting damage to his eye and nose. He also revealed that he was an immigrant who was working to support his wife and children.
"Justice is blind," U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani said. "Whether a businessman heading to the office or an immigrant climbing into the driver’s seat, everyone deserves to be safe at work. As the son of an immigrant cab driver, I am heartbroken for what the victim endured and suffered for just doing his job. Thankfully, the court, today, provided justice to this working-class man."
The FBI conducted the investigation.
"Blanco and Guerrero’s actions tear apart the fabric of our community by targeting those who keep our community running. They disguised themselves as passengers to savagely beat and rob a carshare driver trying to earn an honest living," Acting Special Agent in Charge David Martinez of the FBI Houston field office said. "These two attackers not only robbed their victim of his livelihood but his sense of security. We hope today’s sentence demonstrates to these types of criminals, and others still out there, that we will not allow them to target and terrorize hard-working members of our community."
What happened
The Uber driver picked up Blanco and Guerrero on the morning of Nov. 13, 2022, but said they repeatedly changed their destination. After about 30 minutes, the driver asked the couple to get out of the car, but they refused.
He stopped at a gas station on Ella Boulevard at the North Loop and asked the attendant to call the police.
That's when the couple attacked him. They knocked him unconscious and repeatedly stomped and kicked him.
The federal judge who sentenced the couple noted the "extreme violent nature and circumstances of the offense."
After the beating, the couple stole the driver's car. It was found about a week after the incident at Montie Beach Park.
Here's raw video of the incident:
The victim
The driver didn't want to be identified when he was interviewed by KHOU 11 News in 2022. The immigrant from El Salvador said he'd been driving for Uber for five years without any issues. He said he loved his job but the senseless attack nearly cost him his life.
"You're going to find all kinds of people. The sweetest people and the worst," the driver said. "And you can't expect anything from the worst. The sweet is sweet, sometimes I even get a good tip from the people, but here instead of getting a tip, I got my face like a monster."
He said the duo got aggressive when he told them to get out of his car.
"I was not doing anything," he said. "I was just trying to do my job and they started to get aggressive."
The driver said they threw him on the ground and started attacking him.
"The guy especially, the guy started kicking my face like it was a football for him," he said. "I couldn't do anything. I was trying to defend myself. I just couldn't do it."