Aggravated Kidnapping Suspect Arrested on Warrant
On June 28, 2025, the Friendswood Police Department received a report from a 21-year-old female who had been picked up the same day at approximately 2:51 a.m. in the City of Galveston by a pre-scheduled rideshare driver. The female’s relatives were aware of her taking a rideshare and received notification that her ride had been ended at their Friendswood residence. When they noticed that she was not at the residence they checked her location and tracked it to a vacant business parking lot. Family members drove to the parking lot and spotted a vehicle there. They approached the vehicle noticed their female relative was in the front seat of the car. They safely removed the female from the vehicle and took her home. The female told her family members that she had been drinking earlier in the evening and was falling in and out of sleep on the ride home. After further investigation, detectives found that the driver had intentionally ended the ride before dropping the female off at the residence in Friendswood.
The Galveston County District Attorney’s Office issued a warrant for Aggravated Kidnapping for Sameh Chami, 49, of Houston. Chami was taken into custody by Friendswood Officers on August 6, 2025 in Houston on the warrant and was transported to the Friendswood City Jail. Following Chami’s arrest, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E) set a detainer for him due to his immigration status.
