A Delhi court has convicted an Uber driver of raping a 25-year-old female passenger in New Delhi last December.
Judge Kaveri Baweja convicted Shiv Kumar Yadav Tuesday for a number of offenses, including rape, causing grievous bodily harm and endangering the life of a woman, according to the Times of India.
Yadav, 32, was arrested two days after he attacked and raped the passenger on Dec. 5, 2014. The victim testified in court that Yadav attacked her after taking her to a secluded spot after she fell asleep in the cab when returning home from dinner with friends, according to Time.
The ride-hauling service was banned in the Indian capital after the rape accusations came to light, as HNGN previously reported.
The Uber rape case put the company under the spotlight, with questions being raised about its failure to perform background checks, after it was found that Yadav was out on bail for sexually assaulting another woman in his hometown, southeast of New Delhi, when the rape incident took place.
Yadav was tried in a special fast-track court set up in 2013 as part of new legal reforms introduced after the notorious gang rape of a paramedical student on a bus in Delhi in 2012, which resulted in the victim's death. The case drew international attention and angry protesters took to the streets demanding safety for women in the country.
The court's decision was welcomed by Uber India's President Amit Jain. "Sexual assault is a terrible crime and we're pleased he has now been brought to justice," he said, according to BBC News.
"Safety is a priority for Uber and we've made many improvements — in terms of new technology, enhanced background checks and better 24/7 customer support — as a result of the lessons we learned from this awful case," added Jain.
Yadav's sentencing hearing is scheduled for Friday. He could face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
D.K. Mishra, Yadav's attorney, said his client's conviction was "totally wrong" and plans to appeal the court's decision after reviewing the judgment.
