Crime Punishment - WCCT

Crime & Punishment: Commissioner of Torrington's Board of Public Safety Accused of Making Threats Against His Office

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 21 May 2013 10:05:00 EDT

Plus, someone steals 2,800 pounds of crushed cans, and more strange crimes

A British man was convicted of defrauding an aging musician/author in a scheme to sell key chains supposedly containing dirt from Yankee Stadium. Mark Hayward, president of the Mark I Group, a Westport marketing company, approached Bob Runk of Fairfield with the business idea. Prosecutors say that Hayward presented a letter supposedly from a U.K. bank — which turned out to be forged — showing he was worth 1.2 million pounds. This convinced Runk that Hayward was financially stable and he invested $80,000 in the plan. Runk was the keyboardist of a '60s-era Connecticut band called Uranus and the Five Moons (seriously) and went on to a career authoring books on golf (while self-releasing his own breezy, soft-rock albums). The dapper Hayward, who appeared in court in tailored suits, claimed the dirt-filled keychains were "a real product, a quality product," and he "didn't intend to defraud anyone." Jurors disagreed, and Hayward, 53, faces possible jail time and deportation, reports the Connecticut Post.

Crime & Punishment: Out of Control Bridgeport Man Attacks Police Officer With an Urn

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 14 May 2013 15:00:00 EDT

Plus more strange crimes

For the last six years, Republican state legislators have put together an alternative budget to the one presented and usually enacted by Democrats, who have strong majorities in both houses of the legislature. This year, however, the GOP declined to offer their own plan, probably because party leaders in both state houses are considering running for governor in 2014 and facets of the budget would no doubt be criticized in the campaign. The Democrats first mocked this by posting a document titled "GOP's Budget Proposal" on their website. The PDF file consists of a title page and 79 blank pages. For their next display, they attempted to send intern Matt Wildman into the Legislative Office Building in a chicken costume to deliver wings to the Republicans but Capital police told him he couldn't enter with his face covered. The website CT News Junkie reports that Wildman stripped down to pants and a gray T-shirt and left the chicken wings outside the GOP offices but police also confiscated the food.

Crime & Punishment: Fairfield Man Chases Teenagers With a Machete

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 7 May 2013 16:05:00 EDT

Plus more stupid crimes

A UConn law student has been arrested and ordered to stay off the school's West Hartford campus over a series of disturbing comments she reportedly made online. WFSB reports that the investigation began after 32-year-old Anya Bargh allegedly suggested in an email to the Student Bar Association that the school "celebrate diversity by having the next dean NOT be Jewish." Bargh, a wholesome-looking blonde, reportedly made several other anti-Semitic remarks and used a racial epitaph for African-Americans in the email thread. Police later found a Flickr account apparently belonging to her that featured photos of Barbie dolls in miniature murder scenes along with comments referencing her professors. ("I hate you so much I would like to see you butchered," she allegedly wrote about one.) Teachers told police Bargh was hostile and frequently filed complaints challenging poor grades or mischaracterizing attempts at one-on-one help as sexual harassment.

Crime & Punishment: UConn's New Logo Leads to Controversy

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 12:40:00 EDT

Wayne Winston has been in a four-year battle to wrestle leadership of the Bridgeport chapter of the NAACP, alleging financial improprieties on the part of its current president. Recently, he petitioned the state NAACP to take over the chapter. Coverage of this development in the Connecticut Post came to the attention of a state marshal who has been trying to track Winston down for alleged failure to pay child support to the mother of two of his kids. When the Bridgeport NAACP met recently at a city church, Winston got some good news and bad news. Good news: The state chapter was taking over the beleaguered Bridgeport group. The bad news: 15 minutes into the meeting, the marshal arrived to arrest him. Winston told the court his computer repair business earned little money. "Please don't insult this court," shot back Family Magistrate William Strata, who noted Winston had been ordered to pay the minimum, $20 a week. Winston was released from jail after paying the $1,992.62 he owed, plus a $340 bond.

Crime & Punishment: Drunk Woman Discharges Can of Bear Repellant in Hotel

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 10:40:00 EDT

Plus, the guy who wants Bridgeport students to wear uniforms happens to work at a uniform company

Last year, Operation Bloodline, a joint effort between local cops and federal agents, led to the arrests of 105 people allegedly involved in the crack-selling operation of New Haven street gangs. The sting has been credited with reducing the area's murder rate. However, state's attorneys have hit a snag in their prosecution of two suspects because Hamden Police Officer Dedric Jones did not disclose, when he applied for a warrant to wiretap their phones, that they had both, at some point, dated his sister. Suspected gang member Zarkee Sanders is pressing for evidence from the wiretaps to be dismissed because Jones "was not impartial" in his investigation and was searching for ways to "discourage" Sanders' relationship with the woman. The voice of the sister appears in some of the recordings and she allegedly rented cars that were used for gang business. Officer Jones is claiming her involvement was a surprise to him, reports the New Haven Independent news website.

Crime & Punishment: Turning Guns Into Jewelry

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 14:30:00 EDT

Plus, a Woodbridge animal control officer faces animal cruelty charges and more strange crimes

Peter Thum is a New York City-based social entrepreneur whose humanitarian ventures include Ethos, the bottled water brand that is sold in Starbucks and funds clean water projects in South Africa. Though he is a man of peace and social consciousness, there is one person with whom Thum cannot come to a mutual understanding: Jessica Mindich of Greenwich. Thum has filed a lawsuit claiming that Mindich, a jeweler, stole the idea for her line of jewelry made from the melted-down metal of guns purchased at gun buybacks, from his company, Fonderie 47, which buys guns from conflict zones and also uses them to create artisan jewelry, reports the Associated Press. Mindich started the Caliber Collection in January of 2012, and heard nothing from Thum until several news outlets featured her in the wake of the Sandy Hook tragedy and she gained Snoop Dogg as a celebrity spokesperson. Thum says all potential proceeds from suing the pants off his rival will go to anti-gun violence efforts.

Crime & Punishment: Crossdressing at the Senior Prom

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 9 Apr 2013 11:15:00 EDT

Plus, the missing yellow lab

As a gag, senior Cameron Engle e-mailed the principal of the Morgan School, Clinton's public high school, to ask if he could wear a pink long-sleeve gown to prom (apparently modeling his look after Pinky, a character from the cartoon show "My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic"). This instigated a meeting with school administrators, in which Cameron explained he was "doing it for the fun of it," he told WFSB. As the principal considers the request, a petition, entitled "The Morgan School: Allow Crossdressing at Senior Prom," is gathering signatures on change.org. Its creator has made this an issue of LGBT rights ("transgenders and crossdressers have rights too," she wrote, "we're all human, despite how we want to dress"), much to Cameron's confusion. "Now everyone is taking it serious," he said. "Freedom of rights or whatever... I sparked a revolution I'm not even part of." He now says he may skip prom to play video games with friends, but will definitely wear the pink dress that night.

Crime & Punishment: My Husband is a Fugitive, But I Love Him

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 2 Apr 2013 14:50:00 EDT

Plus, the NRA blankets Connecticut with mailers and robo-calls

Frank Warecke was a girls basketball coach at Abbott Tech High School in Danbury when, in 2003, he was arrested and eventually convicted on charges of having sex with a student. After serving two years in prison, Warecke relocated to Bethany and got married, reports the Danbury News-Times. Things took a plunge when, against the terms of his probation, he began coaching his stepson's youth baseball team. A parent contacted the law and Warecke allegedly lied to his probation officer about the coaching. He then cut off his electronic monitoring ankle bracelet and ran. He and his wife kept a low profile until last Monday when they appeared on a segment of "Dr. Phil" entitled "My Husband is a Fugitive, but I Love Him." Warecke, who still claims to be innocent of the original crime, told the talk show host, "I'm never going to turn myself in, never." He didn't have to; a few days later, police caught up with him in Upstate New York.

Crime & Punishment: Manchester Gas Station Manager Caught Selling K2

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 12:25:00 EDT

Plus, UConn student government elections marred by scandal

The election for president of UConn' Undergraduate Student Government was marked by a surprising amount of scandal and political intrigue. Shiv Gandhi bested Edward Courchaine by 340 votes. Then Courchaine filed a complaint accusing Gandhi of violating school election laws, reports The Daily Campus. Gandhi had made a speech at a campus fashion show, even though campaigning at events funded by the USG is prohibited. Gandhi shot back that he didn't know the show was a USG event because the USG's comptroller — who happens to be his opponent, Courchaine — "conveniently did not put it on the website." Courchaine laid on a few other allegations; he also accused a student government candidate aligned with Gandhi of calling out to passersby in the student union (another no-no). The USG's judiciary board voted to void the election and grant Courchaine the presidency. Then the USG at large voted to overturn that decision. And then the current president vetoed that measure, handing the seat again to Courchaine.

Crime & Punishment: You Messed With the Wrong Clerk

By Nick Keppler — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 12:30:00 EDT

Plus, a woman claims her cat was sexually assaulted

People's United Bank accidentally diverted $74,000 from the account of a supermarket into that of a Bridgeport grandmother, leading to her arrest. Two years ago, Donna Hutchinson discovered $4,000 had mysteriously appeared in her account. Because she had prayed for a resolution to her debt and oncoming foreclosure, Hutchinson, 49, "thought the money was God-sent," she later told police. She initially used it just for bills, but as Jesus continued to shovel in the cash, she paid for vacations and salon visits, reports the Connecticut Post. Meanwhile, Ammar Raslen, owner of C-Town in Stratford, noticed some missing funds. He says he went to police when the bank stonewalled him. Of course, bankers are never arrested for anything, so police charged Hutchinson with felony larceny (though they agreed to wait until she was done babysitting her grandson to haul her in). Raslen says People's has since credited $74,000 to his account without making an apology.