MONROE, CT — A Watch Hill Road resident told police someone in a silver or bluish sedan pulled up to his mailbox, opened the door, reached inside and stole his outgoing mail, which included a personal check, Monday morning.
Police said the resident walked outside of his home to confirm his mail was stolen before reporting the theft. He was advised to cancel his M&T Bank checking account and did so, according to the report.
Thefts from mailboxes and front stoops are common, especially during the holidays when gift cards and packages are being delivered.
Lt. Kevin McKellick recommends bringing outgoing packages, parcels and checks directly to the U.S. Post Office to mail it out, and to retrieve your mail and packages as soon as you can after it’s delivered.
Those going on vacation can go to the Post Office for a stop mail form, and their mail will be held until they return from their trip.
Illegal sale of dogs alleged
Four new homes are planned for the former SPCA of Connecticut property at 359 Spring Hill Road, but one final enforcement action was taken against the controversial animal rescue on Wednesday.
Its former director, Susan Fernandez, 64, of Bridgeport, was picked up by Fairfield police and turned over to Monroe police on its arrest warrant.
Monroe Police Lt. Kevin McKellick said all animals the shelter took in should have had the proper health certificates and been examined by a veterinarian, but none of that happened during a time when the shelter was significantly over capacity.
Fernandez was charged with 72 counts of importing a dog or cat without a health certificate and 72 counts of illegal sale of dogs or cats. She was released on $500 bond for a Dec. 13 court date.
In September of 2022, Monroe Animal Control started an investigation after learning of a Facebook post depicting many dogs being housed at SPCA of Connecticut. McKellick said the number of dogs appeared to exceed the limit of 29 permitted by the town.
He said Fernandez had admitted to shipping 72 dogs and still had 58 dogs on the site at the time.
When Monroe Animal Control also learned health certificates were not in place, the agency applied for an arrest warrant, according to McKellick.
A stolen van
Police conducting a traffic stop in the Comaro Center parking lot, 487 Monroe Turnpike, Tuesday evening learned the Nissan NV200 the driver was in had been reported stolen out of Bridgeport.
The driver, a 30-year-old Port Chester, N.Y., man, told officers the work van was a company vehicle and failed to provide the proper registration and insurance paperwork, according to police.
An investigation revealed the license plate belonged to a different Nissan and a check of the vehicle’s VIN number is how officers discovered the van was stolen, police said.
The owner arrived on the scene and told officers he bought the van on Facebook Marketplace. Police said he admitted to putting the wrong plates on the vehicle, but told officers he did not know it was stolen.
Police charged the employee who was driving the van with operating without a license, and third-degree larceny and he was released on $2,500 bond for a Dec. 13 court date.
Bridgeport police are investigating the sale of the van.
Into the woods
A 22-year-old Bridgeport man involved in a one-vehicle-accident off Purdy Hill Road early Tuesday morning also had an active arrest warrant for failure to appear in court for an infraction issued by Troop I in Bethany, according to police.
Monroe police responded to the accident around 12:23 a.m., finding a 2017 Volkswagen Golf GTI roughly 70 feet in the woods off Purdy Hill Road, directly across from Maple Drive.
The driver told officers he was heading north on Maple Drive and, in the dark, did not realize where the road ended, before crossing Purdy Hill and going through a fence in the 480-block, according to police.
Police said the driver was not injured, but the Volkswagen had to be towed due to disabling damage.
He was cited for failure to obey a stop sign, failure to drive right, misuse of a license plate (because the plate belonged to a different vehicle) and driving without insurance.
When officers ran a check on the Bridgeport man’s driver’s license, they learned about the warrant for his arrest. He was released on $50 bond for a Dec. 11 court date in Meriden.
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