Murdered Uber Driver Was Allegedly Killed By Teen Girl With A Stolen Machete

A 16-year-old girl has been charged with murder, for allegedly stabbing an Uber driver to death on Tuesday in north suburban Lincolnwood. Eliza Wasni has been charged as an adult with first-degree murder in the death of 34-year-old Grant Nelson, of Wilmette.

Wasni appeared in bond court  Wednesday in Skokie where she kept her gaze mostly towards the floor. She was denied bail. A Cook County judge claimed that Wasni was a flight risk, citing her run from the scene of the crime and the clothing change she made. Wasni made several odd decisions on the day she allegedly stabbed Nelson to death. During the bond hearing, prosecutors described the attack as “heinous” and “not provoked in any manner.” Wasni declined to speak to police, officers said, and so far, no motive for the attack was given.

She took three Uber rides on that fateful day. The first was a trip to a train station in Des Plaines, the second Uber took her to a Walmart on Touhy Avenue where she stole a knife and a machete. Surveillance video captured footage of Wasni stealing the items.  The third Uber driver was Grant Nelson, and Wasni would be his last ride.

Eliza Wasni (16) is accused of stabbing Grant Nelson to death with a machete.

“Only two minutes or so after picking up the defendant, she begins to hack at him and stab from the back of the seat,” said Cook County Assistant State’s Attorney Michelle Cunningham. Lincolnwood police said Nelson was stabbed around 3:20 a.m. near the intersection of Touhy and Lincoln avenues. He was taken to St. Francis Hospital in Evanston, where he was pronounced dead around 8 a.m. Tuesday. Prosecutors said Wasni did not know Nelson and “this was a random victim.”

 

Police found Nelson (photo above) screaming for help in the 7200 block of North Lincoln Avenue in Lincolnwood. Before dying later at St. Francis Hospital, Nelson told officers he’d been stabbed multiple times by a female rider. Using Nelson’s Uber app on his phone, police were able to track down his last fare, a girl named “Eliza.” Police said they then found Wasni hiding near the murder scene with the two stolen weapons, which were later identified by prosecutors as a knife and machete; both items she’d stolen from Walmart earlier. Police also claim she attempted to steal Nelson’s car. 

Wasni was enrolled Taft High School according to Principal Mark Grishaber. He said she was enrolled at the Northwest Side school for nine days starting February 8. Before and after the brief enrollment, Grishaber said, Wasni was “in and out of therapeutic hospitals. Her case manager told me she shouldn’t have even been allowed to enroll at Taft, and hearing about this, I guess she was right,” Grishaber said in a phone interview. “It’s just so odd, and very tragic. … I don’t think anyone even knew who she was.”

Wasni appears to be a disturbed teenager, and unfortunately, her mental health cost a man his life. In a statement, an Uber spokesman said,  “We are heartbroken by the loss of one of our partners, Grant Nelson. Our deepest sympathies and prayers are with his family and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.”

According to Uber rules, one must be 18 years old to employ the services. Uber has no idea why Wasni would use their services since she is only 16. What about the murder law Wasni broke? If this wasn’t such a dire situation, it would be comical that Uber is concerned its rule being was broken by a murderer. It’s almost like laws and rules are nothing more than ink on paper and easily broken. Nonetheless, it isn’t the Uber ride that killed Nelson. He was murdered by a sociopath.