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Joseph Soracco, age 61, of Fairfield, was arrested on around 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 16.
Fairfield Police Chief Robert Kalamaras said the department received a complaint of a man threatening and using racial slurs, over a masonry worker's truck being parked in such a way that it blocked a section of sidewalk adjacent to a lot where construction work is being done.
According to Kalamaras, an investigation found Soracco angrily confronted the masonry worker and allegedly brandished a knife during the argument, and repeatedly used ethnic slurs.
He was arrested at the scene. During the arrest, Fairfield officers found he was in possession of multiple knives, and a handgun for which he had a permit to carry, police said.
Officers seized the gun and knives.
Through an in-depth follow-up investigation, Fairfield Police later learned that Soracco owns several more firearms, the chief said.
The Fairfield Police Detective Bureau applied for and served a search and seizure warrant to remove all accessible firearms owned by Soracco from his home.
Soracco was charged with:
- Intimidation based on bigotry or bias
- Reckless endangerment
- Threatening
- Breach of peace
He has been released on bond and is scheduled to be arraigned on Tuesday, Oct. 26, at 9:30 a.m.
Fairfield Police Crisis Intervention officers followed up with Soracco and his family on Sunday, Oct. 17, to facilitate connections with healthcare resources if needed.
"The Fairfield Police Department takes all matters of threatening and hate crimes very seriously and urges the public to immediately report any such incidents that they may observe," Kalamaras said. "Thank you to the bystander who reported this incident, who assisted police by providing critical and timely information during this investigation."
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