Meridenofficialscall for repeat-offender reforms after 6 suspects arrested in 2-day CT crime spree
Aug. 11—Rosado said the need for change became clear over the past two days, as a group of two adults and four juveniles committed armed robberies in multiple towns and endangered citizens and police officers by recklessly driving stolen vehicles.
"People make mistakes," said state Representative Michael Quinn. "I think when you make a mistake the first time, you probably should be dealt with differently than a repeat offender, but the problem is we're treating too many repeat offenders the same way as we're treating first-time offenders, and we have to put a stop to that," Quinn said.
Specifically in Meriden, police said the group was responsible for setting a stolen car on fire in Hubbard Park Wednesday night into Thursday, then driving erratically throughout the night, intentionally engaging with and taunting officers.
Thursday evening on South Broad Street, the stolen vehicle, a black Mazda, was disabled when it hit a police cruiser. The occupants of the vehicle fled on foot and were all captured.
The two adults, Kyle Mitchell-Howe, 20, and Robert Barbera, 18, were each charged with multiple crimes, including larceny of a motor vehicle and interfering with police. Their bonds were set at $500,000 and $1 million, respectively, said Detective Lt. Shane Phillips.
Phillips acknowledged the bonds were higher than typical for the charges, but, he said, that's because the department is concerned about the safety of the community.
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"That bond is a message to send that we don't want individuals like this on our streets, jeopardizing our community," Phillips said.
More charges are expected related to investigations from other towns.
According to Southington police Lt. Keith Egan, suspects driving the vehicle that was later set on fire in Hubbard Park robbed a 60-year-old woman in the parking lot of a Walmart on Queen Street on Wednesday. Her purse was later recovered, but items were missing, Egan said.
Torrington Deputy Police Chief Bart Barown said that on Thursday around 5:40, a woman with a young child was robbed while walking through an apartment complex parking lot. A male exited the Mazda that would later crash in Meriden, brandished a handgun and demanded the woman's purse, Barown said. A witness was able to get the license plate of the stolen Mazda and shared it with police.
The same day in Wallingford, the black Mazda was involved in an armed robbery at a Walmart in that town, said police Capt. James Cifarelli.
Phillips said one of juveniles in the vehicle already had two warrants that were served Thursday, and Barbera had failed to appear in court on charges related to stolen vehicles.
Meriden Mayor Kevin Scarpati said that although he was grateful to be announcing the arrests, it shouldn't have been necessary
"I don't want to join members of agencies across the state of Connecticut, thanking them for their great work that shouldn't have had to happen, because of repeat offenders. Because of lax juvenile laws. We shouldn't be here this morning," Scarpati said.
