Texting 911 brought Lyft driver to safety during kidnapping in East County

The Lyft driver who escaped her alleged kidnapper is telling her story for the first time since the March 9 abduction in East County.

Claudia Miranda says she was forced under the threat of being shot to drive a man to a convenience store then a cannabis dispensary in Lemon Grove.

As San Diego County Sheriff's deputies with their guns drawn moved in to arrest 22-year-old Shane Capezio, Miranda made a break to safety.

"Cops are going to think that it is me doing it, and we are both going to die here," Miranda said.

Miranda is a wife, mother and unhoused. She and her family lives in their cars that they use to rideshare and occasionally a hotel when the tips are good.

"That is the only car that I have," Miranda said. "I have kids, so I have to work. I really didn't think about putting my life at risk. I regret it now."

Around 9 p.m. that Sunday, it was the last fare of the shift. It's one Miranda says she took only because it was on her way back to where she, her husband and son stay in Orange County.

She picked up Capezio at a home in Lemon Grove. He put a laundry basket of belongings in the Kia storage compartment and then jumped in the front seat.

"He had a bottle of alcohol, and he started smoking weed," Miranda said.

Miranda says he grabbed her phone, showed her a Los Angeles police business card, said he had a gun and then forced her to go to a gas station for soft drinks.

"He started choking me. He said, 'Just do it. Don't even think about it. Just do it,'" Miranda said.

She says she was then ordered to take him to a dispensary. Capezio returned her phone to look up directions to the closest one.

This was her chance.

Despite her fear, Miranda managed to contact 911 — she didn't call, she texted. She disguised her phone by putting it on the left side of the steering wheel, and sent a series of cryptic messages that read:

"Help"
"Kidnap"
"Kia soul"
"Gun"
Off the Charts"
"Dispensary"
"Harris and Broadway."

Miranda says texting instead of calling may have saved her life.

"I know that I wouldn't be telling my story right now," she said.

The victim's composure paid off. Just before she was forced to drive further, deputies had the car surrounded. Miranda showed NBC 7 the damage after officers fired a less lethal bean bag shotgun round at the passenger door.

"I was thankful, you know, because I was still alive," Miranda said.

Capezio surrendered. He was handcuffed and then taken into custody.

Miranda escaped with her life, but not without some reoccurring emotional distress.

“I get really scared when I hear a noise," she said. "I start screaming because I think it is happening again. I can’t sleep well."

While the stickers remain on her windshield, that was Miranda’s last rideshare job. She created an online fundraiser after the incident to help support her family.

Capezio remains behind bars charged with several crimes, including kidnapping, robbery and grand theft.

The sheriff’s department is using the opportunity to remind people the fastest way to reach help is by calling 911. However, texting is an option — especially when calling is unsafe.