Two Chicago friends were released from a Denmark prison where they were held for the last two weeks following an altercation with an Uber driver in March, according to a family spokesperson for one of the men.
Owen Ray, 19, and his friend were released from Vestre Prison in Copenhagen on Monday, and they remain in Denmark, a spokesperson for Ray’s family said. When reached by the Chicago Sun-Times, Ray’s family directed questions to their spokesperson.
Ray’s parents, who are with their son, “urged the Danish authorities to recognize Owen’s innocence and release him immediately.”
“We are relieved that Owen has been released from a Danish prison following the unprovoked assault he and his friend suffered at the hands of an Uber driver on March 31. However, we remain deeply concerned that Danish authorities have confiscated his passport and will not allow him to return to the United States — something we understand is unusual in Danish court proceedings,” Andy Ray and Sara Buchen-Ray, the college student’s parents, said in a statement Monday morning.
“The facts make clear that Owen is the victim in this case, and we urge Danish officials to allow him to return home to the United States without delay,” Ray’s parents stated.
The Ray family spokesperson declined to identify Ray’s friend.
On the evening of March 31, Ray and the friend ordered an Uber to return to their Copenhagen hotel and realized they inadvertently entered an address for the wrong hotel after entering the vehicle, the family spokesperson said.
The two then asked the driver to take them to the correct address because the app wouldn’t allow them to adjust the destination and the driver declined, the family spokesperson said.
Ray and his friend then left the vehicle and canceled the ride as they ordered a new Uber when about five minutes later the driver from the original Uber came back to confront the two because he believed he had not been paid, the spokesperson said. Uber records indicate the trip was paid for.
The driver got out of the Uber and continued to threaten the men, who then fled “due to fear” after a scuffle with the man, according to the family spokesperson.
Ray and his friend were arrested early on the morning of April 1 at the airport.
The Uber driver told authorities and Uber that he had been assaulted by the two riders, according to officials.
“The safety of everyone who uses the Uber app is a top priority, and we take reports of violence very seriously,” an Uber spokesperson said.
Uber said it has reached out to Danish police to offer assistance with the investigation.
The U.S. State Department said in a statement that it is aware of two citizens detained in Denmark.
“The department has no higher priority than the safety and security of U.S. citizens abroad,” a State Department spokesperson said. “Staff at our embassy in Copenhagen are providing consular assistance.”
Ray, an University of Miami in Ohio student, was in Denmark during a school break to visit a friend, the family spokesperson said.
Copenhagen police and Ray’s Denmark-based attorney didn’t immediately respond for comment.