Kaelee Collins and Emma McCorkindale
3 days ago
CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) – The man accused of stealing a car in Chicopee on Friday with a three-year-old child inside was in court on Monday.
Vadim Vorobyov of Springfield was arraigned on kidnapping charges after stealing a car in Chicopee on Friday, with a three-year-old boy in the back seat. The judge, noting that probable cause was determined over the weekend, set his bail at $800,000 and barred Vorobyov from contacting the victim and his family.
Vorobyov does not have a record in Connecticut, but does have a criminal history in Massachusetts, which was laid out by a bail commissioner, “His Massachusetts record somewhat dated: 2016 assault and battery, use without authority, intimidation. In 2011, also assault and battery and date of conviction in 1993 for a stolen motor vehicle. Also in Virginia in 1993, a robbery conviction.”
Vorobyov will eventually be extradited to Massachusetts, but Hampden County DA Spokesman Jim Leydon said he may have to face those charges in Connecticut before being moved back to Massachusetts.
Chicopee police say the extradition could happen as soon as later this week or early next week, but another court date was set for April 18th in Connecticut.
The vehicle theft sparked a frantic, multi-state search for the child Friday morning, eventually triggering an AMBER Alert. The boy was found safe in a hotel parking lot in East Windsor. Vorobyov was arrested in a shopping plaza about three miles away in Windsor.
Police at this point couldn’t say if the boy’s mother also would be facing any charges for leaving the boy in the running car.
Kaelee Collins is a reporter who has been a part of the 22News team since 2022. Follow Kaelee on X @kaelee_collins and view her bio to see more of her work.