Suspect Accused Of Pretending To Be Slain Girl’s Uber Driver Skips Court Appearance

The man suspected of killing University of South Carolina student Samantha Josephson was not at his first court appearance at the Richland County Judicial Center Monday.

Nathaniel Rowland, who is in his twenties, did not post bond and therefore was not required to be present at the hearing, the Fifth District Solicitor’s office said in a statement according to ABC Columbia.

Rowland was arrested March 31 and is charged in relation to Josephson’s killing. The 21-year-old student was killed after getting into a car she thought was her Uber, police said.

Rowland has been charged with murder, kidnapping and refusal to stop for police, reported ABC Columbia. His next court appearance has not been formally scheduled.

Josephson was wounded on her head, neck, face, upper body, leg and foot when authorities recovered her body, according to arrest warrants cited by The Associated Press. Josephson’s blood was found in Rowland’s black Chevrolet Impala, Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook said.

Officers arrested Rowland a night after Josephson disappeared. They had a description of his car and located him two blocks from the bar where Josephson had been the night she was killed, according to The AP.

Rowland ran from the vehicle and was arrested after a short chase, Holbrook said. He did not appear at a jail hearing in late March either.

After Josephson’s death, three women anonymously sued Uber for negligence, claiming the company failed to warn customers about alleged sexual assaults committed by fake Uber drivers.