Press Release, Branford Police Department

During the evening of Saturday, Dec. 16, Branford Police arrested 10 juveniles in separate incidents within a 3-hour span.

Around 6 p.m., Branford Police received a call from the Montoya Drive condominiums for an attempted motor vehicle theft. The vehicle’s ignition was tampered with, but the suspects were unsuccessful in starting the engine. Officers located three individuals connected to the crime and upon further investigation, located several screw drivers, USB Chargers (commonly associated with ignition tampering), and black ski masks.

The juveniles were 15 and 16 years old of New Haven, and were each charged with Criminal Attempt to Commit Larceny of a Motor Vehicle, Possession of Burglary Tools, Criminal Trover in the Second Degree, and Criminal Mischief in the Second Degree. Two of the three juveniles are on probation, one having a Global Positioning System Monitor on his ankle for past Crimes. All three had criminal histories.

It is also important to note Branford Police received a call earlier in the evening around 4:45 p.m. that there was an assault of an Amtrak employee, and several juveniles were involved. Through Branford Police officers’ investigation, these same individuals were later connected to this assault which occurred on the Amtrak train.

Around 8:30 p.m., Branford Police received a call from the area of 288 East Main Street and the caller reported juveniles were attempting to steal a vehicle. The caller advised police that there were multiple juveniles involved and they all took off on foot. Through a thorough investigation and helpful witness observations, officers located and detained seven juveniles involved in this incident and were able to connect them to another stolen motor vehicle (from West Haven), as well as the attempted stolen vehicle from 288 East Main Street.

The juveniles were from West Haven and New Haven. Two juveniles were 12 years old, two were 13 years old, two were 14 years old and one was 15 years old. Three of the juveniles were wearing Global Positioning Monitors from previous crimes. Each juvenile was charged with various crimes including Criminal Mischief Second Degree, Conspiracy to Commit Larceny of a Motor Vehicle, Larceny of a Motor Vehicle, and Criminal Trover Second Degree.

All ten juveniles were transported to Bridgeport Juvenile Detention after officers obtained Orders to Detain.