Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Julio Alberto Schlaefli, 50, was arrested yesterday and charged with sexual battery after allegedly picking up a woman whose ride request had been canceled, turning off his Uber app, and sexually battering her while driving her home.

Schlaefli was operating his personal vehicle as an UberX vehicle at about 1:45 a.m. on September 28 when a friend of the victim used the Uber “request for a guest” feature to request a ride for her in the area of 111 S. Main Street.

A short time later, the friend left to walk another friend home, and the victim sent a text to her friend, asking what type of car to look for. Her friend said it was a white Nissan Versa.

Meanwhile, the friend checked the Uber app to see where the car was, and it looked to her like the car was traveling to her location instead of the victim’s location, so she thought she must have entered the request incorrectly and canceled it.

Shortly after the request was canceled, the victim saw a white Nissan at the curb near her, and the driver, later identified as Schlaefli, called her name, so she got in the car. Schlaefli reportedly told her the ride had been canceled, but he would “still take her home.” He reportedly asked her about her evening and engaged in other small talk but also allegedly used his hand to sexually batter the victim and asked her more than once if she would “go home” with him. She said she would not and asked him to please take her home.

The arresting Gainesville Police Department officer noted that the victim and her friend are not from Gainesville and are “not familiar with the streets, directions, or landmarks. This fact contributed to the immobilizing fear in the [victim] as she was being sexually assaulted.”

The victim told the officer that the driver sexually battered her until they arrived at the destination, where she got out of the car and ran as fast as she could to safety, banging and yelling at the door of the residence. The person who opened the door reportedly told the officer that the victim was extremely upset and was unable to speak for several minutes.

Investigators found that Uber data showed Schlaefli continuing to the area of 111 S. Main Street, even after the request was canceled, picking up the victim, and dropping her off at her destination about 5-6 minutes later. The Uber app reportedly started tracking Schlaefli after he dropped the victim off at her destination.

Post Miranda, Schlaefli reportedly said he had used a finger to penetrate the victim while she was in his car in the early morning hours of September 28 and that he had purposely turned off his Uber app after he learned that the request had been canceled.

Schlaefli reportedly told detectives that he has been an Uber driver in the Gainesville area for about three years. Detectives believe there may be additional victims, and anyone who may have been a victim or has any information is encouraged to contact Detective Russano at 352-393-7719 or the Combined Communications Center at 352-955-1818. If you prefer to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 352-372-STOP (7867) or visit

Schlaefli has one previous local conviction for driving under the influence in 2006. Judge Sheree Lancaster ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold him without bail until trial.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.