By WMBD
PEORIA – A judge could decide on Monday whether to hold an Ohio man accused of stealing a rental car with a small child inside and then leaving that child at a gas station.
Victor Farris, 45, appeared by way of video conferencing from the Peoria County Jail. He stood in an empty room from the jail and sounded forlorn. He was wearing the orange jumpsuit of a jail inmate and answered Judge Paul Gilfillan’s questions with a simple yes or no.
Peoria County prosecutors have asked that he be held pending trial, but the judge, noting his full docket and that the county’s public defender’s office had not yet had time to talk to Farris, set that hearing for Monday morning.
As expected, Farris pleaded not guilty and asked for a jury trial which was set for Dec. 9. That trial will likely be continued as his attorney will likely need more time to go over the police reports and other evidence.
Last month, a Peoria County grand jury indicted him on charges of aggravated vehicular hijacking, kidnapping and possession of a stolen motor vehicle in connection with the Sept. 4 incident.
If convicted, he faces at least six years and possibly up to 45 years behind bars.
On Sept. 4, Farris allegedly took a Kia SUV from an Enterprise Rent-A-Car facility off Pioneer Parkway. A 3-year-old boy was inside and for the next 30 minutes, officers throughout the area looked for him and the child, who was left at a gas station on Airport Road. He was unharmed and has been returned to his family.
That led to a massive manhunt in the area that centered around the Rock Island Trail near Princeville. Other agencies including the Illinois State Police were involved. Drones and aircraft scoured the area looking for him.
He is also facing charges in Woodford County as well.
Deputies arrested Farris on Aug. 31 after he was found sleeping in a stolen Nissan Sentra at a gas station at the Goodfield exit. The car, which had no license plates, was stolen from a Hertz Rent-A-Car facility in Indianapolis. When deputies roused him, they smelled alcohol, officials there said.
He was arrested and taken to the Woodford County Jail on charges of DUI, having no valid driver’s license and for possession of a stolen motor vehicle. Farris was then released from jail as he was not eligible for detention under the SAFE-T as none of those offenses were qualified for detention.
Farris has since been indicted in Woodford County on two counts of DUI and one count of possession of a stolen vehicle. He faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.
WMBD can be reached at [email protected].
