NEWS RELEASE
Date: August 26, 2019
Contact: Captain Ronald Smith
Phone: (203) 230-4029
PIO#: 19-111
On August 24, 2019 at approximately 9:00p.m. Hamden Police responded to the area of Dixwell Avenue and Putnam Avenue on the report of a stolen motor vehicle. Officers were advised that the victim’s stolen Tesla sedan was being “tracked” in the vicinity of Warren Street.
Officer Christina Giori arrived and observed the stolen vehicle “parked diagonally in the roadway on Warren Street.” The vehicle was unoccupied. Moments later, a 38 year-old Hamden resident arrived and stated that the vehicle was her property. Her husband, a 59 year-old Hamden resident then arrived at the scene. Officer Giori attempted to ascertain the name of the police department that had submitted the stolen vehicle report and if there was a notation to process it. Officers learned that the vehicle had not yet been reported stolen to local authorities by the victims.
The female victim stated that she and her family were finishing dinner at a local restaurant. When they exited the restaurant, they noticed that their vehicle had been stolen. The female victim, along with her husband and 2 children, ages 7 and 12, entered their other vehicle and began to “track” their stolen vehicle. “After driving around” their app received a “ping” in the area of Dixwell Avenue and Circular Avenue. Her husband, who was operating their second vehicle, observed their stolen vehicle parked at a red control signal on Dixwell Avenue at Putnam Avenue. Her husband parked next to the stolen vehicle and began yelling at the suspect. He subsequently eluded them, not before striking their vehicle in “the left area of the rear bumper.” The suspect then fled, abandoning the stolen vehicle on Warren Street.
The suspect is described as a “younger, light-skinned black male, with a round face.” Anyone with information is asked to contact Officer Cristina Giori of the Hamden Police Department Patrol Division at (203) 230-4030.
The Hamden Police Department would like to stress the following:
- If your vehicle is stolen, contact your local police department immediately
- Do not attempt to engage in any form with a criminal suspect, especially with small children present