‘Straight out of a horror film’: ‘Fake Uber’ murder trial of slain USC student to begin

A 2019 Columbia murder-kidnapping case that made national headlines involving the killing of a University of South Carolina student who got into a car she mistakenly thought was an Uber ride is scheduled to go on trial Monday at the Richland County courthouse in downtown Columbia.

Nathaniel Rowland, 27, faces up to life in prison without parole if convicted of the murder and kidnapping of Samantha Josephson, 21, an academically talented USC senior who had earned a scholarship to and been accepted by Drexel University School of Law in Philadelphia.

Rowland, who has pleaded not guilty, has been held without bond in jail since his arrest on March 30, 2019, a day after Josephson was abducted and killed. She had been stabbed repeatedly and her body was left in a Clarendon County field, some 60 miles from Columbia. Rowland was not an Uber driver.

The case illustrates the potential perils of using rideshare apps, as well as a reminder of how tragedy can without warning insert itself into the most seemingly commonplace of events.

In Josephson’s case, she — as do many other USC students each week — was just catching a ride back from Five Points, a popular nightspot area just off USC’s main campus in downtown Columbia when the event turned into a nightmare.

“It was straight out of a horror film, I have no doubt, ” said State Rep. Seth Rose, D-Richland, who represents the Five Points area.

After Josephson’s death, Rose introduced and got passed within months a law that requires rideshare drivers, such as Uber and Lyft, to display their license number prominently in the front of the vehicle. The bill also made it a criminal offense to impersonate a rideshare driver.

On the night of March 29, 2019, Josephson had been with friends in Columbia’s Five Points district when she ordered an Uber to take her back home around 2 a.m.

When a black Chevrolet Impala pulled up in front of the sidewalk where she was standing, Josephson got in, according to evidence in the case. Evidence includes video from the numerous surveillance cameras in Five Points. Previously published video showed her talking on her cell phone just before the car pulled up.

But it was not an Uber driver. Her body was found by hunters about 14 hours later.

Meanwhile, police, who had been alerted by Josephson’s roommates that she was missing, were hunting for the black Chevrolet Impala, thanks to the vehicle whose image was captured on surveillance cameras.

The night after Josephson went missing, Columbia police spotted a Chevrolet Impala in Five Points and stopped it. A man, whom police said was Rowland, jumped out and ran but he was quickly caught.

Inside the Chevrolet, police found blood they would later say that lab tests confirmed was Josephson’s.

Police also said that the vehicle was equipped with childproof locks, indicating that if Josephson had tried to jump out of the car, she would have been unable to because of the locks.

The trial is expected to last a week or more.

Laura Hudson, the S.C. Crime Victims Council executive director, said in an interview she hopes the case will raise awareness among people who use rideshare or taxis to pay attention to their situation.

“I hope the trial will reemphasize how dangerous it is, how dangerous it is to get into cars without checking,” Hudson said. Another safety precaution is to travel in groups, she said.

“I’m hoping this trial will be a warning — not just to young women, but to young men as well,” Hudson said.

After Josephson’s death, USC President Harris Pastides urged students to make sure that the ride that arrives to pick them up matches the information provided in the app, and to ask the driver “What’s my name?” when being picked up.

State Judge Clifton Newman, a trial judge with 21 years on the bench, will preside.

Prosecutors include Fifth Circuit Solicitor Byron Gipson, Dan Goldberg, April Sampson and Amanda Gaston.

Attorneys from the Richland County Public Defenders office will represent Rowland. They areTracy Pinnock, Alicia Goode and Robert Pillinger.

Jury selection will begin Monday.

This story was originally published July 16, 2021 at 11:20 AM with the headline "‘Straight out of a horror film’: ‘Fake Uber’ murder trial of slain USC student to begin."