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Police & Fire
5-Year-Old Boy Remains In Critical Condition After Near Drowning In River 5-Year-Old Boy Remains In Critical Condition After Near Drowning In River
5-Year-Old Boy Remains In Critical Condition After Near Drowning In River A 5-year-old boy who was pulled from the Connecticut River in Middlesex County this weekend remained in critical condition a day later, authorities said.  Police were called to a stretch of the river near Landing Road in Haddam on Saturday afternoon, Oct. 26, when the boy and a man fell from a kayak into the water, the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection said.  Responders took the child to Middlesex Hospital, but doctors had the boy airlifted to Connecticut Children's Medical Center in Hartford in critical condition.  WTNH reported the child was …

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Man, 72, Sexually Assaulted Child: Police Man, 72, Sexually Assaulted Child: Police
Man, 72, Sexually Assaulted Child: Police Police in New Haven County arrested a 72-year-old Connecticut man following an extensive investigation, authorities announced Friday, Oct. 25.  Mark Keith Pasquariello, of Stratford in Fairfield County, is charged with two counts of sexual assault in the fourth degree, risk of injury to a minor, and two counts of illegal sexual contact with a minor, North Haven Police said.  Investigators did not release much information on the investigation to protect the identity of the child.  However, they said Pasquariello shared "multiple inappropriate comments and physical contac…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Driver Charged In Crash That Killed Teenage Motorcyclist Driver Charged In Crash That Killed Teenage Motorcyclist
Driver Charged In Crash That Killed Teenage Motorcyclist A Connecticut man who crashed into a teenager earlier this year in Fairfield County has been charged with his death, authorities announced on Friday, Oct. 25.  Hector Rolando Lemus-Portillo, of Stamford, is charged with negligent homicide with a motor vehicle and failure to yield while turning left, police said. Because of their age, the 17-year-old was not identified.  Police said Lemus-Portillo was driving south on Lockwood Avenue in Stamford around 9:15 p.m. on May 17. The teenager was driving north on the same road.  Lemus-Portillo turned left onto William Stre…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Woman Swindled $300K From CT Medicaid Over 2 Years: Police Woman Swindled $300K From CT Medicaid Over 2 Years: Police
Woman Swindled $300K From CT Medicaid Over 2 Years: Police A 59-year-old Connecticut woman faces decades in prison after state investigators claim she stole more than $300,000 from Medicaid by submitting false claims and changing patient's medical records.  Iselande Desyr, of Stamford in Fairfield County, is charged with one count each of health insurance fraud and larceny in the first degree by defrauding the public community, the state's Division of Criminal Justice said.  Desyr was the owner of Holistic Psychiatric Services, LLC, which claims to treat a variety of disorders in children and adults with holistic means on its website…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
23-Year-Old Killed In Plainville Wreck After Motorcycle Crashes Into Guardrail: Police 23-Year-Old Killed In Plainville Wreck After Motorcycle Crashes Into Guardrail: Police
23-Year-Old Killed In Plainville Wreck After Motorcycle Crashes Into Guardrail: Police A 23-year-old Connecticut man was killed Thursday, Oct. 24, when he wrecked his motorcycle into a guardrail, authorities said.  Peter Bienasz, of Plainville in Hartford County, was riding behind a Toyota Prius on Route 72 near the I-84 on-ramp, when he crashed into the back of the car, causing him to careen into a metal guardrail around 12:14 p.m., Connecticut State Police said.  Bienasz was thrown from his motorcycle, and paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene, authorities said.  The Prius' driver and passenger, both of New Britain, were not injured in the Plainville c…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Women Claimed Elite Hackers Made Her Life A Nightmare For Years, But She Did It All: Police Women Claimed Elite Hackers Made Her Life A Nightmare For Years, But She Did It All: Police
Women Claimed Elite Hackers Made Her Life A Nightmare For Years, But She Did It All: Police A 63-year-old Connecticut woman told police for years she and another person were the target of an ongoing online harassment campaign that lasted years by an anonymous person who made their lives miserable. But she was sending the messages and threats, police in New Haven County said.  Deborah Ann Calloutas, age 63, of Wolcott, is facing several felonies linked to the alleged faked harassment that went on for years, Connecticut State Police said.  Calloutas first reached out to police in 2021 to say she and her unnamed friend were the targets of hackers who were doctoring their ph…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Woman Seriously Injured After Car Crashes Into Her, Speeds Away Woman Seriously Injured After Car Crashes Into Her, Speeds Away
Woman Seriously Injured After Car Crashes Into Her, Speeds Away A 21-year-old woman suffered serious head injuries after a car crashed into her and then sped away in New Haven County, police said.  The unnamed woman pushing a car with bottles across Broad Street in Meriden just before 8 p.m. She had nearly made it through the crosswalk when a car crashed into her in the northbound lanes, authorities said.  The sedan slowed down for a moment before driving away.  Paramedics rushed the woman to Hartford Hospital with serious injuries to her head and lower body.  Witnesses described the car to Meriden Police as light-colored (white, l…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Cold Case: Police Bust Man In 35-Year-Old Rape, Kidnapping Spree Case Cold Case: Police Bust Man In 35-Year-Old Rape, Kidnapping Spree Case
Cold Case: Police Bust Man In 35-Year-Old Rape, Kidnapping Spree Case A 53-year-old man arrested this week that could be the key to solving a series of kidnappings and rapes that happened in a small Fairfield County town in 1989, authorities announced.  David V. Coffey was arrested and charged in connection to the abduction and rape of a woman in Danbury, authorities said. Police added other arrests are pending in the cases.  The woman was one of several who said they were attacked in the Lake Avenue and Merrimac Street area of Danbury, but "despite the diligent efforts of the investigators," detectives were unable to solve the case, …

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Wethersfield Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash ID'd: 'Words Can't Express Magnitude Of This Loss' Wethersfield Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash ID'd: 'Words Can't Express Magnitude Of This Loss'
Wethersfield Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash ID'd: 'Words Can't Express Magnitude Of This Loss' A Connecticut firefighter who was killed when the ATV he was on rolled over while battling a blaze has been identified as a grandfather and former member of the Hartford Fire Department.  Robert "Sharky" Sharkevich Sr., age 66, was working as a member of the Wethersfield Volunteer Fire Department on Tuesday, Oct. 22, fighting a brush fire that had spread to more than 90 acres on Lamentation Mountain in Berlin, Meriden Police said.  Sharkevich and three other firefighters were in Meriden on the southern edge of the blaze, riding a firefighting ATV that flipped around 5:30 p.m.…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
(UPDATE) Wethersfield Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash While Fighting Brush Fire In Berlin (UPDATE) Wethersfield Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash While Fighting Brush Fire In Berlin
(Update) Wethersfield Firefighter Killed In ATV Crash While Fighting Brush Fire In Berlin Update: Authorities have identified the man killed battling the blaze as a 66-year-old retired Hartford firefighter. Click here for more information on him and the crash.  Original: A Connecticut firefighter was killed in an ATV crash while fighting a brush fire in Hartford County on Tuesday, Oct. 22, authorities said.  The Wethersfield firefighter was riding on a firefighting ATV that crashed around 5:30 p.m. in Berlin, where crews are battling a brush fire that has spread to 90 acres on Lamentation Mountain.  The firefighter, whose name has not been released, was on the s…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Man Fights Officers While Violating Protection Order: Cops Man Fights Officers While Violating Protection Order: Cops
Man Fights Officers While Violating Protection Order: Cops A 41-year-old New Jersey man got into a fight with multiple Connecticut police officers trying to stop him as he violated a protective order in New Haven County, authorities said.  Jose Valentin Duran-Castillo, of Phillipsburg, NJ, faces several felony charges following his arrest on Friday, Oct. 18, East Haven Police said. A judge ordered him held on a $250,000 bond.  Police were called to a Highland Avenue home in East Haven around 5:45 p.m. to reports of an unwanted man on the property. Officers arrived to find Duran-Castillo, who immediately became hostile with authoritie…

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by Josh Lanier
Police & Fire
Dog Found Starving, Emaciated, Locked In Cage In Home's Basement For 24 Hours: Police Dog Found Starving, Emaciated, Locked In Cage In Home's Basement For 24 Hours: Police
Dog Found Starving, Emaciated, Locked In Cage In Home's Basement For 24 Hours: Police A 2-year-old dog rescued over the weekend was found starving and emaciated at a New Haven County home. The poodle's owner now faces an animal cruelty charge, authorities said.  Police were called to Jolissa Nozier's Naugatuck home on Sunday evening, Oct. 20, after neighbors complained that her dog had been barking for hours, police said. They told officers that Nozier had been gone for a day. A rescue agency said the animal had been left in a crate in the Carroll Street home's basement since the owner left.  Naugatuck Police took custody of the dog named Rocky and surrendered it t…

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by Josh Lanier