MONROE, CT — A 25-year-old Bridgeport man escaped injury after a large branch fell onto his Jeep Grand Cherokee, smashing the windshield as he drove south on Main Street (Route 25), just south of Knollwood Street, Sunday morning.
There were no passengers inside the vehicle.
Police said the branch, which was approximately 12 inches in diameter, came crashing down onto the vehicle’s grill, hood, windshield, roof and passenger side doors causing dents and scratches. Glass debris could be found throughout the interior of the Jeep.
Due to the severity of the damage, the vehicle had to be towed. The accident occurred around 9:28 a.m.
Trailer, stuffed animals stolen
Stewart Amusements reported the theft of a large 2012 dual axle box trailer from its property at 900 Main St. Sunday.
The trailer was filled with a large volume of stuffed animals and police said several had been unloaded in front of the garage, alongside where the trailer was parked, though $200-to-$300 worth of stuffed animals were left inside the stolen trailer, according to the report.
Employees last saw the trailer at 2:30 a.m. before returning to work at 3 p.m. and realizing it was gone. The value of the trailer is estimated at $8,000.
The Monroe Police Detective Division is investigating.
Phone number leads to a scam
A 66-year-old Monroe man called to cancel the Norton Virus Protection subscription for his business, but the phone number reached a scammer instead of the online privacy company, according to a complaint made on June 24.
The man who answered the call identified himself as an employee and told the resident he would cancel the subscription, and that he was also entitled to a refund. He asked for resident’s banking information to give him the money.
The Monroe man provided the banking information over the phone, while simultaneously looking at his finances online. Police said he saw a $25,000 transfer go into his business account.
When he questioned the transfer, the representative asked him to buy gift cards to reimburse the company for the money it transferred into his account. Police said the victim immediately hung up the phone and went to his bank, Wells Fargo.
“No legitimate company will ask you to reimburse them with gift cards,” Lt. Kevin McKellick said
The victim does not appear to be out of any money right now and is working with Wells Fargo to protect his accounts. Police said he closed the business account and opened a new one.
To avoid calling scammers while trying to reach a business, McKellick said to first look for an old bill or a contract to find the right phone number to call. When searching for a phone number online, he said to make sure it is from a legitimate web address.
Identity theft
A 38-year-old Monroe woman filed an identity theft complaint Sunday after receiving notification about new credit and debit cards in the mail from Target, Discover and Pathward Bank.
The first two mailings were to confirm credit card accounts and the third, from Pathward Bank, had a debit card, which required activation, according to police. All three fraudulent accounts were applied for under her maiden name, which she no longer uses.
She contacted all three companies to dispute the applications as fraud and is not out of any money at this time, the report said.
She was advised to contact the three major credit bureaus to freeze her credit, to monitor her financial accounts and to contact the Social Security Administration.
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