A Wilmerding man faces multiple felony charges in connection with two incidents in Tarentum, including one in which police said he ran off and left his toddler son behind when the car he was riding in was pulled over for traffic violations.

Vern Alexander Connor, 40, of the 100 block of State Street, was charged with felony counts of endangering the welfare of children and drug delivery along with five related drug and child endangerment charges in connection with an incident police say took place on Feb. 21, according to a criminal complaint.

Connor is being detained in the Allegheny County Jail after bond was denied at his preliminary arraignment. Court records show that a warrant for Connor’s arrest was issued in Philadelphia, where he will be transported to face charges.

In the second Tarentum incident, Connor faces felony charges of providing false identification to police, carrying a firearm without a license and three counts of possession of drugs with the intent to deliver in connection with a March 29 traffic stop in which he also was a passenger, according to a separate criminal complaint.

Police say Connor has a previous felony drug conviction and is not permitted to possess a gun.

A preliminary hearing on both sets of charges is scheduled for April 13 before District Judge Carolyn Bengel.

Police said Connor was taken into custody March 29 after the vehicle he was riding in was stopped for traffic violations shortly before midnight near Ross Street and Pleasant Avenue.

The officer wrote in the complaint that he knew Connor’s identity and that he was wanted on a warrant, but said Connor gave him a false name and birth date when questioned.

Police said they searched the vehicle after a firearm was seen under the driver’s seat next to a Crown Royal whiskey bag.

They confiscated a .40 caliber Smith & Wesson along with 29 grams of crack cocaine and six suboxone strips that were in the whiskey bag. Police said there also was $346 on the seat where Connor was sitting.

The driver of the vehicle provided police a written statement that Connor gave her the gun and bag to hide under the seat as they were being pulled over.

During the Feb. 21 incident involving the toddler, a patrol officer pulled a vehicle over near East Seventh Avenue and Corbet Street for driving with high beams in traffic, an expired inspection sticker and a burned-out taillight, according to a criminal complaint.

Police said a man later identified as Connor got out of the back seat and began walking away before running off when an officer ordered him to stop, the complaint said.

The driver and another passenger in the vehicle told police that the 2-year-old boy belonged to the man who fled. They told the officer the man was their “dealer” but that they only knew him by the nickname “Woke.”

The driver was charged with felony child endangerment, DUI and drug possession.

Police said they searched along the path Connor fled and found a black backpack an officer saw him carrying when he took off, the complaint said.

The backpack contained 42 grams of marijuana, a scale with a powdered substance on it, four suspected fentanyl tablets and a package of baby wipes, the complaint said.

Police said they also viewed surveillance video from the area showing Connor leave the backpack behind when he scaled a fence to escape from police.

Investigators said they were initially unable to identify the toddler and made arrangements for the Allegheny County Office of Children, Youth and Families to take custody of the boy.

While awaiting the arrival of personnel from the agency, police got a call from a woman claiming to be the boy’s mother, who told police someone contacted her to say the baby was at the police station.

The woman declined to tell police who provided her with that information, and the child was turned over to CYF officials.

Police said the woman later came to the police station and identified Connor as the child’s father and provided them with a written statement that he was caring for the boy at the time of the traffic stop.

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