ONLY ON WPXI: Fiancé of murdered Uber driver speaks out, criticizes company’s initial response

MONROEVILLE — The fiancé of the Uber driver who was shot and killed over the weekend is speaking out only to Channel 11.

Brandon Marto spoke with Target 11 Investigator Rick Earle over the weekend when he was frantically searching for his fiancé, and he had to tell his children that she was missing.

Just hours later, the search ended tragically when Christi Spicuzza’s body was found in a wooded area along Rosecrest Drive.

Her car had been found hours early in nearby Pitcairn. According to Marto, her purse was still in the car, but the dashboard camera was missing.

Marto said he last talked to his fiancé Thursday when she was at a store in Monroeville and was heading out to pick up some passengers for the evening. Marto and Spicuzza have four children.

Marto sent this statement to Earle, offering thanks for all the support he’s received and criticizing Uber’s response to his missing fiancé, who he calls his wife in the statement, especially during the early hours Thursday night and into Friday morning.

This is his entire statement:

“I would like to thank the entire community for the non-stop outpouring of prayers, condolences, and donations. My entire family and I would not be able to get through this difficult time without support from the family, friends, and wonderful neighbors. I would like to personally thank Pitcairn Police Chief Scott Farrelly for truly going above and beyond to give our family the answers we were so desperately searching for. Amongst the outreach of support that I have received, I have been contacted by a number of female Uber drivers, all of whom wanted to express their condolences but also to share how unsafe they feel on trips. We together agree, there are insufficient safety measures in place for the drivers and this needs to change. In the first extremely critical hours of my wife’s disappearance, when every second mattered, I feel that I could not have received less help from Uber, even though I was attempting to move mountains to find Christi. I have seen that Uber has released a statement saying they are sending condolences to the family, while ‘working with’ police. Yet I have received no such condolences, and I do not want the public to confuse the words ‘working with’ as ‘cooperating’. I don’t want to see this happen to someone else’s sister, daughter or wife. Uber needs to protect its drivers more and it starts here with Christi. Please continue to send us prayers. Thank you.”

Uber released an updated statement about the incident:

“No family should have to suffer such an unimaginable loss and our thoughts are with Christi’s loved ones during this difficult time. We’ve been in touch with law enforcement and continue to support the investigation.”

Uber also responded to the specific allegations made by Brandon Marto.

They said they just can’t release information to anyone who calls and that they do work with police and share that information with investigators.

Uber also said it’s in the process of reaching out to Brandon Marto.

Uber has said it’s deeply committed to driver safety, implementing features on the app such as an emergency button that provides real time information to 911, and a rider verification system that requires riders to upload a valid identification when using prepaid cards.

Sources: Investigators combing through video to learn what happened to murdered Uber driver

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