Springfield police are asking the public for help finding a 14-year-old boy who ran away, with detectives saying he may be somewhere around Union Station, the city's busy transportation hub downtown. Woldy Ventura is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall and 110 pounds. Anyone who spots him or knows where he is has been asked to contact authorities right away.
The appeal came from the Springfield Police Youth Aid Bureau, which posted the request on Thursday night, according to the Springfield Police Department. The department is directing tips to its detectives at 413-787-6360, or to the non-emergency line at 413-787-6300 for anyone with information on Ventura's whereabouts.
Why Union Station Matters to the Search
Detectives pointing to Union Station as a likely location is notable given the scale of the facility. Located at 55 Frank B. Murray Street in Metro Center Springfield, the station reopened in 2017 following an $84.5 million redevelopment and now serves as a major regional hub housing Amtrak, CTrail, Peter Pan Bus Lines, Greyhound, and Pioneer Valley Transit Authority buses, according to local transit background compiled by Trains In The Valley. The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority alone runs 18 local bus routes out of the station, connecting downtown Springfield to Chicopee, Holyoke, Westfield, and Amherst — meaning a teen present at the station would have access to both citywide and long-distance travel options.
That combination of local and intercity transit is likely part of why police flagged the station specifically, rather than a residential neighborhood or school. It puts Ventura within reach of destinations far outside Springfield if he chose to keep moving.
How Massachusetts Law Treats Runaway Cases
Under Massachusetts General Law Chapter 119, Section 39E, minors between the ages of 6 and 18 who repeatedly run away from home fall under what the state calls Child Requiring Assistance proceedings, a non-criminal court process meant to connect families with social services rather than punish the child, per guidance from the Massachusetts government. That framework replaced the state's earlier Child in Need of Services system in 2012. It means Ventura's case, like others the Youth Aid Bureau handles, is treated as a child-welfare matter rather than a delinquency case.
The Springfield Police Department is led by Superintendent Lawrence E. Akers, a 38-year veteran of the force who took over as the department's top official in 2024, succeeding former Superintendent Cheryl Clapprood, according to the department's own background materials. The Youth Aid and Student Support Unit operates out of police headquarters at 130 Pearl Street and regularly handles cases like Ventura's.
Runaways Make Up Most Missing-Child Cases Nationally
Ventura's case fits into a much larger pattern nationally. Runaway cases accounted for 92% of the 32,167 missing children reports the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children supported in 2025, and the organization says it helped resolve 90% of those cases that year. But the same data underscores the stakes behind public appeals like this one: NCMEC estimates roughly 1 in 7 missing youth reported to the organization in 2024 and 2025 were likely victims of child sex trafficking, which is part of why police and child advocates treat runaway reports with urgency rather than dismissing them as routine.
Public appeals like the one issued for Ventura are a standard part of how the Youth Aid Bureau operates. The unit issued a similar notice in January for 14-year-old Juliana Garcia, as reported by WWLP-22News, and Hoodline has covered several similar searches involving other local teens over the past two years.
Resources for Families in Crisis
Families and youth in crisis have additional resources beyond local police. The National Runaway Safeline, reachable at 1-800-RUNAWAY, offers 24/7 confidential crisis intervention and fields an average of 85,000 contacts a year, and it also coordinates free transportation home for runaways through its Home Free program. Massachusetts police guidance also directs officers who encounter runaway youth to dial 211 to reach the state's Runaway Assistance Program, which coordinates behavioral health assessments and safe placement options aimed at keeping juveniles out of court.
As of now, it remains unclear how long Ventura has been missing or what circumstances led to his disappearance, and police have not said whether transit staff at Union Station have been specifically alerted. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is urged to contact Springfield police detectives or the department's non-emergency line.
