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HORROR: Jewish SC Student Murdered After Mistaking Vehicle For An Uber


The man accused of killing a woman who got into his car thinking it was her Uber ride had activated the child locks in his backseat so the doors could only be opened from the outside, police in South Carolina say.

Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook also said investigators found the victim’s blood in Nathaniel David Rowland’s vehicle. Rowland, 24, was arrested and charged in the death of 21-year-old Samantha Josephson, a University of South Carolina student from Robbinsville, New Jersey.

Investigators would not say what they think Rowland did to Josephson from the time she got into his black Chevrolet Impala in Columbia’s Five Points entertainment district around 1:30 a.m. Friday until her body was dumped in woods off a dirt road in Clarendon County about 65 miles (105 kilometers) away.

Josephson had numerous wounds to her head, neck, face, upper body, leg and foot, according to arrest warrants released Sunday by the State Law Enforcement Division. The documents didn’t say what was used to attack her.

Josephson’s blood was found in the trunk and inside Rowland’s car along with her cellphone, bleach, window cleaner and cleaning wipes, Holbrook said.

“This was a bad scene,” the police chief said at a news conference late Saturday.

A noon funeral was set for Wednesday at Congregation Beth Chaim, 329 Village Road East in the Princeton Junction section of West Windsor. Burial will follow at Perrineville Cemetery in the Perrineville section of Millstone in Monmouth County. The temple is where Samantha Josephson became a Bat Mitzvah.

Hunters found Josephson’s body Friday afternoon just hours after it was dumped, despite being left in an area that was “very difficult to get to unless you knew how to get there,” Holbrook said.

Rowland has recently lived in the area, he said.

The night after Josephson was kidnapped, a Columbia police officer noticed a black Chevrolet Impala about two blocks from the Five Points bars where Josephson was kidnapped. The driver ran, but was arrested after a short chase, Holbrook said.

Rowland is charged with kidnapping and murder, Holbrook said. He was being held in the Richland County jail. It wasn’t known if he had a lawyer.

Rowland decided not to appear at a hearing in jail Sunday. The judge allowed Josephson’s mother to speak, The State newspaper reported.

Marci Josephson said her daughter was planning to go to law school after graduating in May and described her as “bubbly, loving, kind and full of life.”

“Unlike him, Samantha valued human life, and could never harm another soul,” she said. “Unlike him, Samantha had love within her heart, and a purpose in her life, the life he brutally ended.”

Safety advocates urged college students to match the vehicle color and model, the license tag number, and the photo of their ride-share drivers before getting in a vehicle and make the driver say their names to them before they introduce themselves.

“She simply, mistakenly, got into the car thinking it was an Uber ride,” Holbrook said.

Samantha’s father, Seymour Josephson: “Samantha was by herself. She had absolutely no chance. None. The door was locked, the child safety locks were on. She had absolutely no chance,” her father said Sunday night at a candlelight vigil in Columbia.

Josephson told his daughter’s friends they can help by always taking rides or walking around town in groups of two or more because there is safety in numbers.

“If there is somebody else in that car, there is actually a chance,” said Josephson, who plans to speak to ride sharing services about better identifying their vehicles.

The crime shook Columbia, the state capital where the University of South Carolina is one of the main economic engines.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster and his wife, Peggy, asked on a message on Twitter for prayers for Josephson’s family.

“Peggy and I are devastated and crushed over the Josephson family losing their beautiful daughter Samantha. She was one of the brightest young stars,” McMaster wrote.

(AP)



8 Responses

  1. I’m sorry to hear what happened to this college student, and what her family and friends must be going thru. Two weeks ago I was involved in a car collision (someone ran into the back of my car while we were driving- no injuries- the entire back of my car was smashed in, with broken glass everywhere). We both waited on the side of the busy roadway for the police to arrive. About 5 minutes after waiting I hear someone trying to open the door to get into the backseat of my car, I’m thinking it’s a passerbyer checking in with me to see if I’m alright, she asks “Can you please unlock the door, you are my Uber, right….?”. With an inoperable car with broken glass and a smashed in rear, someone actually thought I was her ride and tried to get into my vehicle. Funny but true.

  2. So sad and frightening! I do look for a sticker on the car before I get in. Even more important is to match the make and color of the car which Uber or Lyft will show you before. Also wait until the driver asks your name before getting in and you can ask him for his name which is also on the app.

  3. TGIShabbos,

    Sounds like your “Uber rider” was probably drunk or otherwise not working with a “full deck of cards”.

  4. Just wondering..does anyone know if he specifically tried to pretend to be her uber or she just unfortunately picked the wrong car with an animal at the wheel? Ive heard say that criminals get hold of the app somehow and show up when ubers are called and im just concerned if thats true or hype.

  5. concerrned mom, I’m not sure based on the information provided. Uber provides you with the make/model of the Uber car+ gives you the license plate number. I don’t take Uber too often, but I quickly check those out before getting inside.

  6. Concerned Mom: To answer your question of what exactly happened:
    The following day after she did not return to her apartment her roommates contacted the police. The party goers were contacted and as usual someone took cell phone video at the party.
    The video went viral. You can easily find the video online.
    In the video you can see Samantha, clutching her cellphone and waiting for her Uber at about 2:00 a.m. She was standing outside next to the crowd of people at the party.
    A dark car pulls up right next to her. It looks like he saw a party and stopped there to look.
    Samantha does not hesitate. She approaches the car, opens the door and goes in.

  7. Nebech so tragic that a young promising Yiddishe maidel was ruthlessly murdered by this animal, who no doubt was given every opportunity in life by our permissive society.

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