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| Vacha (Facebook) |
Robert Vacha, who received probation after mugging a widow on the Boystown strip the day after the woman’s husband died last August, was arrested on a probation violation warrant as he left the Center on Halsted Thursday. It was his 22nd birthday.
An officer who routinely patrols Halsted on foot recognized Vacha at the COH and arrested him nearby. Confronted by officers, Vacha allegedly identified himself as “Steven Lapinskas,” a stunt that earned him an additional criminal charge of obstructing identification.
Vacha, who goes by the name Jacob Lapinskas on Facebook, is a “self admitted escort” according to last night’s arrest report.
According to court records, Vacha is accused of violating the terms of his probation in five ways, including testing positive for marijuana (twice) and failing to make any payments toward court-imposed fines and fees.
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| Cook Co. Sheriff’s Dept |
Last August, Vacha mugged a 61-year-old woman at Halsted and Roscoe as she walked to have dinner with her family the evening after her husband died.
Officers tracked the woman’s cell phone pings and arrested Vacha moments later inside the Brazilian Bowl restaurant at Broadway and Belmont.
First time strong arm robbery offenders generally pull a 3-year prison sentence in Cook County, but Vacha was given a tremendous break, receiving 6 months in the Cook County Jail (offset by time served) and 30 month’s probation.
Three months before he robbed the widow, Vacha appeared in a video at the Windy City Times‘ “Youth Summit” in which his closing thought was “Don’t trust everybody at first glance…always be aware of your surroundings.”
Vacha’s bond is set at $1,000.
