Petaluma carjack suspect arrested in San Francisco

A Sonoma County man was arrested in a suspected carjacking outside a Petaluma grocery store that led to a high-speed chase on Highway 101, police said Thursday.

Matthew James Vidor, 27, was arrested in San Francisco after the Wednesday night vehicle theft outside a Lucky’s store on Lakeville Street, Sgt. Paul Gilman said.

Vidor, a transient, is accused of jumping in the running 2004 Volvo wagon as its elderly driver loaded groceries in the back.

The driver, an 84-year-old man, tried to stop the theft by jumping in the passenger seat but was pushed out as the suspect drove away, Sgt. Andrew Urton said. He suffered minor injuries in the fall, he said.

Officers spotted the car entering southbound Highway 101 at East Washington Street. Police said Vidor accelerated, passing other cars on the shoulder, before getting off the freeway at Petaluma Boulevard South and immediately getting back on.

Driving recklessly and at high speeds, he crossed into Marin County, where he lost officers near Novato, Urton said.

A search with multiple police agencies and the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office helicopter yielded no results, he said.

Later, the car was pulled over in San Francisco, in part for not having a rear license plate. Officers learned it was stolen and arrested Vidor without incident, Gilman said.

He was booked at the Sonoma County jail on suspicion of carjacking, felony evading, elder abuse and assault with a deadly weapon.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ppayne.