Crime & Safety
Springfield Abduction: Miguel Rodriguez Held Without Bail
Rodriguez was charged with kidnapping, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and witness intimidation.
SPRINGFIELD, MA — The Springfield man accused of abducting and driving off with and 11-year-old girl, spurring a statewide manhunt, was in court Thursday morning.
Miguel Rodriguez, 24, was charged with kidnapping, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and witness intimidation. He was held without bail until his dangerousness hearing on Jan. 22.
Rodriguez's lawyer attempted to have him excused from his court appearance on Thursday but the judge denied the motion. The judge also ordered a mental evaluation of Rodriguez, despite the defense objecting.
The judge brought up concerns about his mental health, citing a previous restraining order. Rodriguez's family told Masslive that he suffers from schizophrenia and refused to take his medication. His sister filed a restraining order against Rodriguez three years ago following violent outbursts — the family told the outlet they knew one day he would find himself in trouble but not like this, they apologized to victim and her family. "We want to say sorry to her and her family for what they went through in those hours," the family told Masslive.
An Amber alert was issued on Wednesday evening after an 11-year-old girl went missing and was last seen being forced into a blue Honda, shortly after getting off of her school bus. Police received several 911 calls from drivers who said they saw a Honda matching the description and were able to stop the car and arrest Rodriguez while he was still on the Mass Pike.
The girl was "recovered safely" and with "no apparent injuries," police said. She was taken to a hospital for precautionary evaluations.
The child's family issued one statement through the Springfield police, thanking police and the community for working together to bring their daughter home. The statement reads:
“My husband and I would like to thank our neighbors; the State, Chicopee and Springfield police (especially Detectives John Lopez and Angel Marrero, Captain Trent Duda, Mayor Sarno, Commissioner Clapprood; all local and national news outlets, family, friends, our Hampden Charter and St. Michael’s school communities, the doctor, nurse and social worker who assisted Charlotte in the ER; and strangers near and far who, via social media, got the word out to help bring Charlotte home. In particular, we’d like to thank Amanda Disley and her husband for their vigilance and courage for putting themselves in harm’s way to make sure she wasn’t out of their sight. The outpouring of love and support, near and far, is overwhelming. We are eternally grateful.”
Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno released a statement as well, saying in part, "I am hopeful that our court system does the right thing and keeps ‘this monster’ off our streets forever.”
The department said the family will not be doing any media interviews and this will be their only statement.
There were witness reports that a woman was also in the car with Rodriguez, but police found no one else in the vehicle. Police confirmed that Rodriguez is the only suspect facing charges and authorities aren't looking for anyone else.
