Tuesday, May 15, 2012
The suspect, accused of choking his dog to death, had his case continued to June 5. Demonstrators who followed the man to his car say they plan to gather again.
Dressed in a blue work shirt and khaki pants, Branford resident Alex Wullaert did not speak at all - either during his brief stand in front of a judge at New Haven Superior Court, or on the long walk back to his car, tailed by a crowd of protestors. Wullaert, 22, is accused of strangling Desmond, a pit bull/boxer mix he adopted from the New Haven Animal Shelter, and dumping the animal's body in the woods. He was arrested last week following an investigation that spanned months and included officers from State Animal Control and officers from the Madison and Branford Police Departments. "Shelter mom" Micah Rapini was one of about two dozen protesters who waited on the courthouse steps to greet Wullaert. "We loved him," she said about …
Monday, May 14, 2012
More than two dozen people were sent to the hospital — none with life-threatening injuries — after a box truck rear ended a transit bus along Frontage Road in East Haven, near the Branford town line.
Update at 3:55 p.m. East Haven Police have released the names of the bus and the truck drivers. The truck's operator has been reported as Juan Rodriguez, 28, of Allentown, Penn. And the CT Transit bus driver has been reported as Alexander Diosa, 37, of Cheshire. Update at 3:30 p.m. Monday East Haven Police are asking for the public's help in piecing together what led a truck to rear end a CT Transit bus along Frontage Road during Monday morning rush hour. According to East Haven Police Lt. Joseph Slane, the department’s accident reconstruction team is now investigating the incident. "Preliminary reports indicate that the CT Transit bus was stopped on Frontage Road in front of Chili’s restaurant at a bus stop," Slane stated in a written …
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Some of the more "interesting" police reports this week.
Five Naugatuck teens were arrested on trespassing charges after police said they were caught on the roof of Naugatuck High School, attempting to do free running, also known as "parkour." -- A Hamden man was arrested for firing a gun to scare two children who were on his property looking for a stick to fix a broken bicycle. -- A man in Milford was arrested for stealing a $130 pair of boots from Sears at the Westfield Connecticut Post Mall. -- A Milford man was arrested in North Haven for allegedly drinking and driving. Two days later, the department arrested him again – this time for allegedly shoplifting. -- A Stratford man was arrested last weekend for allegedly filiming up an unknowing woman's dress at the Westfield Connecticut Post …
Saturday, May 12, 2012
No signs of debris or distress were found during the 12-hour search along the shoreline.
Update as of 1:00 p.m. Saturday (May 12): The search effort to locate a reported person in the water near West Haven has been suspended after rescue crews were unable to locate any signs of distress this morning. “Coast Guard and local agencies conducted an extensive searched for 12 hours covering more than 500 square miles based on the information we received,” said Peter Winters, the search and rescue coordinator at Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound, in a press release. “We have decided to suspend our active search pending the development of new information." The Coast Guard received no reports of any vessel being overdue or unaccounted for. Agencies involved in the search included: HU-25 Falcon rescue jet crew from Air Station Cape …
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Do news organizations that publish 911 call audio help or harm the communities they serve?
The initial shockwave that swept through Connecticut last week after the Ramsey family tragedy changed to disgust following the decision of area news outlets to publish the graphic 911 recording, during which Mrs. Ramsey told the dispatcher that her husband was lying dead “in a pool of blood.” Patch received access to the tape but did not publish a link to it. As an American writer who considers the First Amendment our most cherished right, I believe that making 911 tapes available to the public is essential to community safety; however, are we not also human beings? Did the tape need to be released so soon after Mr. Ramsey’s tragic demise? And how—if at all—did the tape’s release advance the public’s understanding of this heinous crime? …
Monday, May 7, 2012
The 22-year-old is charged with cruelty to animals and released on a promise to appear in court.
A 22-year-old Branford man was arrested today for allegedly choking his pit bull-boxer mix to death and discarding the dog in a plastic bag in the woods. Branford police officers, along with a state animal control officer, arrested Alex Wullaert, of 57 East Main Street. Wullaert reportedly killed the dog in January but it was not discovered until March 11 when a Madison resident came upon the carcas in the woods by a lake in that town, according to police. State Animal Control Officer Todd Curry, who works for the State of Connecticut Department of Agriculture, said the investigation began that day when the resident reported the finding to Madison Police. Madison Police Officer Kimberly Lauria, who investigated the incident, was able to …
Allegedly stole items out of car on Mix Avenue, according to police.
A Branford man was arrested last Wednesday afternoon moments after he broke into a car and stole items out of it, according to police. At about 2:45 p.m. Wednesday Hamden Police got a report of a larceny from a motor vehicle at 625 Mix Ave., according to police spokesman Capt. Ronald Smith. A witness was able to give Officer Stephen Baris a description of the person responsible, Smith said, and moments later Baris saw a person who fit that description going into a Dixwell Avenue business. Augusto DiMarzo, 26, of 26 North Main St., Branford, was charged with third-degree burglary, sixth-degree larceny and third-degree criminal trespass. Several stolen items were recovered, including cell phones, iPod’s and gift cards, Smith said. DiMarzo …
Sunday, May 6, 2012
A round-up of some of the most "interesting" police reports from your town and others nearby.
A New Haven man known as "Bubbles" was arrested for allegedly dealing drugs from his car, according to the New Haven Register. -- A Branford man previously convicted of throwing explosives from his car window was sentenced this week to 30 months in prison for possession of a sawed-off shotgun. -- A Beacon Falls man was arrested on a larceny charge after police said heshoplifted pajama pants and a pregnancy test from the Walmart in Naugatuck. -- A man claimed to have a bomb when he held up a People's Bank branch in Stratford earlier this week police said. He reportedly made of with 50 bucks.
Friday, May 4, 2012
Branford’s John Iannucci will face 30 months in prison for 2011 arrest.
Almost one year to the date of his arrest by Branford Police, Branford resident John R. Iannucci, 41, of Montoya Drive, was sentenced by the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut to serve 30 months in prison, followed by three years of probation for illegal possession of a firearm. In early May, 2011, Branford Police operating on information, stopped Iannucci, at the exit 54 entrance to I95 south and found him in possession of a sawed-off shotgun and gun silencer. A convicted felon, Iannucci was arrested for criminal possession of the gun, held at the Branford Police Department and arraigned in New Haven court. Captain Geoffrey Morgan of the Branford Police stated that Iannucci’s altered shotgun had a shortened barrel. The…
Thursday, May 3, 2012
The leak has closed a portion of West Main Street in the area of Jefferson Road to the Branhaven Plaza, as gas company officials investigate.
Updated at 12:16 p.m. Branford Fire Department Deputy Chief William Pepe reported that an excavator owned by Empire Paving Company struck a 4-inch, high-pressure gas service main that feeds the old Echlin Manufacturing Company building at 965 West Main St. today around 10:30 a.m. Paving crews immediately cleared the area once they struck the pipe, and exited to wait the arrival of emergency crews, stated Pepe. Upon arrival, Branford Fire Department and Branford Police Department quickly addressed the scene and closed West Main Street at Alps Road, near the scene of the break and at Jefferson Road on the opposite end of the area. Traffic was detoured to Short Beach Road just pass the West Rotary. Earlier today, Empire Paving also damaged a …
Renee
12:22 pm on Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Are we forgetting to look at the big picture here.. I believe if he can kill a poor animal dont you think he can kill a person?? Look at how these serial killers start out! They should be evaluating him. I hope he doesnt get away with this. more ›