ShopRite Shopping Cart Vandal Charged With Criminal Mischief In Stamford

STAMFORD, Conn. -- Angry that shopping carts had been left on his street, a Van Buskirk Avenue man retaliated by stealing and vandalizing 27 ShopRite shopping carts in September, said police, who charged him with first-degree criminal mischief in the case.

Stamford Police Department charge man with damaging 27 shopping carts.
Photo Credit: *File*

Frank MacEachern

12/22/2016 8:09 p.m.

Robert Leder, 46, of Van Buskirk Avenue, was first arrested on Sept. 30 after a ShopRite security guard noticed a white man pushing one of the shopping carts into a garage of a Van Buskirk Avenue garage, police said. The security guard told Stamford city police officer who was working overtime at the 200 Shippan Ave. grocery story what he had observed.

Store security had noticed that numerous shopping carts had been badly damaged, police said. The officer went to the residence, found the shopping cart and spoke with Leder about it, police said. The bottom rack had been cut out of the cart, according to the police report.

Leder told police he had taken the carts and damaged them because he was angry that they were showing up on his street. He was arrested and charged with third-degree criminal mischief and sixth-degree larceny on Sept. 30.

On Tuesday, police pressed the additional charge of first-degree criminal mischief for damaging all 27 carts.

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