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A woman who ordered a driverless Waymo for her daughter in Los Angeles discovered an unknown man concealed in the vehicle’s rear cargo area before the ride began. She canceled the trip, kept her daughter away from the car, and called 911. Police removed or detained the man, but the available reports did not confirm an arrest or criminal charge.
What happened in the Waymo?
The incident happened Monday afternoon, December 8, 2025, in Los Angeles’ Westlake neighborhood near MacArthur Park. The Waymo had reportedly been summoned near South Westlake Avenue and Sixth Street for a woman’s daughter.
When the vehicle arrived, the woman saw a man partially concealed behind the rear seat in the trunk or cargo area. The daughter had not yet entered the vehicle. Video shared in local reports shows the woman confronting the man before police arrived and removed him from the car.
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The woman canceled the ride and contacted emergency services. The immediate safety decision was straightforward: she did not allow her daughter to board and did not attempt to physically remove the stranger herself.
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Local coverage from CBS Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Times describes police responding at the scene and looking into how the man got into the vehicle.
Was the man arrested?
There is no publicly confirmed arrest or criminal charge in the reports reviewed for this incident. CBS reported that the LAPD had not disclosed whether the man was arrested. FOX 11 reported that police made no arrests and told the station that no crime had been committed.
The careful distinction matters: police can detain or remove someone while investigating a situation without that person being formally arrested or charged. The available reporting supports saying that officers dealt with the man at the scene—not that he was arrested.
How did he get inside?
Waymo told the Los Angeles Times that a pedestrian entered the cargo area after a previous rider left the trunk open during drop-off. ABC7 reported the same general explanation.
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That is the strongest reported account, but it does not answer every question about the episode. The public reports do not establish precisely when the man entered, how long he remained inside, why he entered, or whether anyone else was involved. The man’s reported comments that “they” put him there should not be treated as proof that he was abducted or placed in the vehicle by another person.
“Trunk” is useful shorthand, although the reports describe a person hidden behind the back seat in the vehicle’s rear cargo space rather than necessarily sealed inside a conventional sedan trunk.
Was this a failure of Waymo’s self-driving technology?
The incident happened inside an autonomous vehicle, but the available reporting does not show that Waymo’s navigation or driving system caused the man to enter. The reported sequence points more directly to an access, post-trip inspection, and passenger-safety problem: a previous rider allegedly left the cargo area open, allowing an unauthorized person to get inside.
There is also no verified public technical finding that Waymo’s sensors detected the man and ignored him, failed to detect him, or were incapable of detecting someone in the cargo area. The Los Angeles Times reported that Waymo did not say whether the sensors could identify a person in that location or whether the man could have exited on his own.
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That means the story should not be presented as proof that the vehicle’s driving AI malfunctioned. It does raise a legitimate safety question about how autonomous ride services inspect vehicles between trips and handle unauthorized access.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What did Waymo say?
Waymo described the episode as “unacceptable.” The company said its rider-support team assisted the customer during and after the incident and that it was implementing changes. Reports also said the customer received a ride credit.
Waymo advised riders to double-check the vehicle before entering and to call 911 if anything appears unsafe. Official rider information is available on Waymo’s rider page, and support is available through Waymo Support.
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- How long the man had been inside the vehicle.
- Whether he entered at the previous passenger’s drop-off location.
- Whether he could open the cargo area from inside.
- What the vehicle’s monitoring systems recorded about his entry.
- Whether property was damaged or stolen.
- Whether police or Waymo took additional action after the initial response.
There is no verified evidence in the reviewed reports that the man intended to assault, rob, abduct, or otherwise attack the woman or her daughter. Online theories about him hiding in wait for a passenger remain speculation.
What should riders do in a similar situation?
- Do not enter. If an unknown person or suspicious object is inside, stay outside the vehicle.
- Keep children away. Move yourself and any children to a safe location.
- Do not confront or remove the person physically. Avoid escalating the situation.
- Call 911 if there is an immediate threat or you feel unsafe.
- Contact the ride provider. Use the vehicle’s rider-support or emergency-contact feature when it is safe to do so.
- Preserve evidence. Keep video, trip details, vehicle identification, timestamps, and relevant messages.
- Report the incident to both the provider and police when appropriate.
For readers who prefer a human-driven alternative, Uber and Lyft provide conventional ride-hailing services, with availability and safety features varying by city and ride type. Neither service should be described as categorically safer based on this single incident.
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