A 3-year-old autistic boy sitting in the backseat of a car stolen from outside a Massachusetts residence Friday morning was found safe in Connecticut roughly two hours later.
Massachusetts State Police arrested 52-year-old Vadim Vorobyov, of Springfield, Mass., in connection with the abduction. The suspect faces kidnapping and child endangerment charges in both states.
Police said the red 2021 Toyota Camry stolen by Vorobyov was parked with its engine running in the southern Massachusetts town of Chicopee when the suspect got behind the wheel and headed south. An Amber Alert was issued after the boy’s mother called authorities for help around 8:50 a.m.
!!!!!AMBER ALERT!!!!!!
MA 3SCX29 a red 2021 Toyota Camry. The vehicle was stolen this morning before 9am on Exchange Street in Chicopee, MA. Inside the vehicle was a 3-year-old autistic child last seen wearing a green Easter shirt with a dinosaur and eggs. pic.twitter.com/uAB2wqPXSj
— Watertown Police (@WatertownPD) March 29, 2024
After crossing state lines, Vorobyov allegedly dropped the boy off outside a Rodeway Inn & Suites in East Windsor, where an employee contacted police.
The unoccupied stolen vehicle was soon after recovered in a Windsor, Conn., shopping mall parking lot. The suspect wasn’t far away.
“Officers and troopers searching the shopping plaza located Vorobyov at Anytime Fitness, one of the businesses in the plaza, at approximately 10:40 AM and took him into custody,” Massachusetts State Police initially said.
Connecticut police later clarified the arrest was made at a Dollar Tree in the same shopping plaza as the gym. A K9 named Dunkin sniffed him out.
Authorities said a license plate reader spotted the stolen car heading south on Route 91 near the Massachusetts border with Connecticut. Toyota is also credited with helping police track the vehicle.
The boy, who isn’t believed to have been harmed, was transported to a Massachusetts hospital for a precautionary examination.
