Cops: S.F. cabbie held hostage by woman wielding scissors

Police in Oakland are hunting for a armed driver who hit a civilian and rammed police before fleeing on Monday morning. Police in Oakland are hunting for a armed driver who hit a civilian and rammed police before fleeing on Monday morning. Photo: Evan Sernoffsky Photo: Evan Sernoffsky Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Cops: S.F. cabbie held hostage by woman wielding scissors 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

A San Francisco cabbie narrowly escaped from a 49-year-old woman, who police say held him captive with scissors to his throat over the weekend after she scored drugs near Civic Center.

Andrea Player was arrested following the violent attack on suspicion of robbery, kidnapping and making criminal threats, Officer Albie Esparza, a police spokesman, said Monday.

The bizarre episode began around 4:25 p.m. Sunday when Player hailed the taxi at Post and Jones streets in the city’s Tenderloin and asked the 63-year-old driver to take her to Market and Seventh streets, police said.

Player got out near Civic Center to buy drugs, and then got back into the taxi and asked to go to Lombard and Pierce streets, Esparza said. When they got to the destination, the cabbie told Player to get out of the car, but she instead whipped out a pair of scissors and held them to the man’s throat, police said.

Player then ordered the man to keep driving and at Leavenworth and Ellis streets, he jumped out of the cab and ran off to get help, Esparza said.

The suspect stole some of the man’s things, including his credit card machine, before police said she ditched the cab.

The driver later found the cab on his own and drove to the police station. Officers soon arrested Player. She remains in San Francisco County Jail.

Evan Sernoffsky is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: esernoffsky@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @EvanSernoffsky