Fugitive agrees to be returned to Delaware
Fugitive agrees to be returned to Delaware
Oakland Tribune, Jul 7, 2007 by Paul Burgarino
MANTECA -- A fugitive wanted on suspicion of 50 counts of rape against a girl he adopted from Ukraine agreed to be returned to Delaware as part of a plea bargain in San Joaquin County Superior Court on Friday.
Vladimir Karpov, 50, pleaded no contest to two local misdemeanor charges stemming from his capture in Ripon after spending weeks on the run from authorities. He will be held on $2 million bail while the agencies arrange to send him back to Delaware.
Karpov was taken into custody at the Ripon Motel on Tuesday morning after officers discovered that his vehicle with a single North Carolina license plate had been stolen.
Further investigation revealed Karpov had an unregistered, loaded semiautomatic pistol, about $15,000 wrapped in a baggie in his pants pocket and identifications from other states, Ripon police Sgt. Ed Ormonde said. Officers arrested Karpov on suspicion of possession of a loaded weapon and suspicion of receiving stolen property.
A computer check of his name turned up a Delaware State Police warrant for his arrest on 50 counts of rape and one count of continued sexual abuse of a child, authorities said.
Karpov, a Ukrainian immigrant, traveled to Ukraine in 1999 and adopted a 7-year-old girl he brought back to the United States, Delaware State Police Cpl. Jeff Whitmarsh said.
The alleged sexual abuses began two weeks after he took the girl to his Newark, Del., home, but were not uncovered until she told her former foster family in 2005, Whitmarsh said, adding that the girl is now in the care of another family in New Jersey.
Karpov told Ripon police he was innocent of the molestation charges and was passing through town. Such an unusual license plate in the small town prompted an officer to check it, Ormonde said.
In court for arraignment on Friday, Karpov appeared fidgety yet agreeable with Judge Jose L. Alva as he signed papers to be extradited back to Delaware.
After it was explained to Karpov that the recent charges had been reduced as part of the plea bargain, as well the waiving of his rights, Alva asked him how he pleaded.
"Not guilty, I, I, mean guilty," Karpov stammered. "You'll have to excuse me, this is my first time in court."
Through the court-appointed attorney, his plea was reiterated as no contest.
San Joaquin County prosecutors agreed to the charges and the sentence of three years' probation.
"All I know really is the local charges against him. I knew a little about what they wanted him for in Delaware, but we kept those separate," Deputy District Attorney Brian Short said.
Alva signed an affidavit for the fugitive's warrant in Delaware, where Karpov will be extradited.
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