Rideshare Driver Charged With Kidnapping and Sexually Assaulting Underage Girl Was Released After Arizona Border Crossing, DHS Say

A Guinean national charged with kidnapping and sexually assaulting a teenage rideshare passenger in Maryland crossed illegally into Arizona in December 2023 and was released by Border Patrol during the Biden administration, according to DHS information reported by Fox News correspondent Bill Melugin.

Abdoulaye Dia, who had been living in Lanham, Maryland, was arrested September 16 and charged with first-degree rape, kidnapping, second-degree assault, and third-degree sex offense. Investigators believe there may be additional victims, the Montgomery County Police Department announced September 17.

The Maryland arrest came approximately three months after Dia’s arrest in New York City on sexual-abuse charges. A spokesperson for the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office told WJLA that prosecutors requested he be held on bail, but a judge ordered supervised release.

According to Melugin’s account of the information DHS provided, Dia crossed illegally near Lukeville, Arizona, on December 21, 2023, and was subsequently released into the United States by Border Patrol. DHS identified him as a citizen of the West African nation of Guinea who is in the country illegally.

Melugin wrote in a post to X, 

“DHS says Abdoulaye Dia of Lanham crossed the border illegally into [Lukeville], AZ on December 21, 2023 (one of the days my team and I were there doing live shots showing masses of African men crossing illegally), but was released into the U.S. by Border Patrol. 

Dia was arrested by NYPD on June 10th for sexual abuse by forcible compulsion, forcible touching – sexual/intimate parts of another person, injure child less than 17, and sexual abuse without consent. 

He’s now been arrested by police in Maryland for allegedly kidnapping and raping an underage teen girl during an Empower rideshare in which he was the driver. Police say he took her to a parking lot and raped her in his vehicle, and they believe there are more victims.”

I shot this video in Lukeville, AZ on 12/21/2023, the day DHS says this African alleged rapist crossed into the area illegally. It’s possible he’s in this video somewhere. It was an absolute free for all back then as masses of African men crossed into AZ with no resistance. pic.twitter.com/9dwPv5tY3Y

— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) September 18, 2026

Melugin reported that NYPD arrested Dia on June 10 for alleged sexual abuse by forcible compulsion, forcible touching, an offense involving injury to a child younger than 17, and sexual abuse without consent. WJLA also reported the June arrest and allegations, citing DHS.

The Maryland investigation began September 15, when Montgomery County officers were dispatched to an area hospital following a report of a rape that had occurred earlier. A teenage girl under 18 told officers she had been raped by an Empower rideshare driver, according to the police release.

The girl told investigators that Dia drove her to a parking lot in Silver Spring, where the assault occurred. Special Victims Investigations Division detectives identified Dia using information obtained through the rideshare application. The department’s Repeat Offenders Unit arrested him the following day in Lanham, police said.

Empower told Fox News Digital that its July 16, 2026, screening of Dia found no incidents.

“The background check, sex offender check, driving record check, social security trace, and global watchlist search on this customer were conducted on July 16, 2026, and did not reveal any incidents,” the company told the outlet.

“The Montgomery County Police Department reached out to Empower about this incident. Empower, as is our policy, asked law enforcement what Empower could do to assist their investigation and immediately provided all information requested.”

In its September 17 announcement, the department said Dia was being held without bond at the Montgomery County Central Processing Unit. Detectives said the circumstances of the investigation raise concerns that there may be other victims. Anyone who believes they may have been victimized by Dia is asked to contact the Special Victims Investigations Division at 240-773-5050, according to police.