Off-Duty Po-Po?
Hartford Police received a call Nov. 6 from the Mobile gas station on Brainard Road, according to Sgt. Christene Mertes. The caller said that while she was pumping gas a white male in a blue Oldsmobile told her to get off her cell phone and flashed a badge. The man refused to show his badge again when asked, entered his vehicle and drove off. There are "no cell phone" signs on gas pumps, so police aren't sure if this was a case of police impersonation or an off-duty officer. Mertes said Hartford Police are investigating the incident.

Taking Toiletries
A woman in Hartford has joined the ranks of Tipper Gore, actresses Bai Ling and Winona Ryder and tennis pro Jennifer Capriati in employing the five-finger discount in a retail shop. Debra L. Roberts of Hartford, 49, was arrested Nov. 2 for shoplifting at The Family Dollar store, according to West Hartford Police. Capt. Joseph LaSata says Roberts allegedly stole $26 in "assorted personal hygiene items." She was charged with sixth-degree larceny and released on a $2,500 nonsurety bond.

Bad Apples Upset the Apple Cart
The invitation to "pick your own" carries with it the notion of free labor, but not free fruit. Within eight days, one Glastonbury apple orchard was targeted by two thieves who helped themselves to more than a bushel and a peck. Glastonbury Police report they responded Oct. 27 to the orchards at 560 Birch Mountain Road, where the owner said he had discovered boxes of freshly picked apples in the car of Colin C. McNamara, 26, of West Brattleboro, Vt. McNamara was arrested for sixth-degree larceny and third-degree criminal trespass. On Nov. 3, Glastonbury Police arrested Richard Pezzente, 48, of Hebron. Police say when the owner confronted Pezzente, he tapped the owner's legs several times to get him to move out of the way. Pezzente allegedly then grabbed the owner by the neck and pushed him out of the path of his car. Pezzente is charged with first-degree robbery, sixth-degree larceny, third-degree assault, third-degree strangulation and third-degree criminal trespass.

Cat Burglars Caught
A Hartford resident is being credited with foiling a robbery when he reported to Hartford Police on Nov. 4 that he witnessed two Hispanic males removing a significant amount of wiring from the basement of a residence on Belmont Street. When the good Samaritan approached the men, they claimed they were hired to work at the home. The witness called police and reported the license plate of the vehicle the men were driving, according to reports. Police, who traced the wiring to a scrapyard, arrested Hartford residents Gilbert Davilla, 40, and Ricardo Serrano, 24, each with two counts of third-degree burglary and third-degree larceny as well as conspiracy to commit third-degree burglary and third-degree larceny. The men allegedly stole more than $1,400 worth of Romex electrical and Cat-3 cable wiring. Each is being held on $75,000 bond.

Jump Like a Spider, Strike Like a Dragon
Hartford Police report that two male patients in the observation ward of Hartford Hospital clashed Nov. 4 when one, Juan Montes, 49, was offended by another elderly patient who was speaking loudly. Police allege Montes, who at 5-foot-10, weighs 250 pounds and has a tattoo on his right forearm of a spider and another on his left forearm of a dragon, struck the man then jumped on top of him. Montes was charged with third-degree assault of a victim over the age of 60 and held on $1 million bond.

Top Banana Nabbed
On Nov. 6, the U.S. States Attorney for Connecticut announced in a press release that Antonio Miguel Arias, 38, of Bethlehem, Pa., was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison and fined $1 million for his role in a huge cocaine trafficking ring. According to trial evidence, Arias headed a cocaine importation organization which hid hundreds of kilograms of the drug in wholesale shipments of bananas from Turbo, Columbia, to Bridgeport, Conn. The cocaine-laden banana shipments were then transported to a fruit distribution company operated by Arias in the Bronx, N.Y. On Aug. 7, 2007, FBI agents seized 444 kilograms of cocaine from the fruit market, followed by a seizure of 50 more kilograms at a commercial fruit warehouse in New Haven. Once Arias leaves prison, he is subject to 10 years of supervised release.

Where There Are Smokes, There's Fire
The recent rise in per-pack tax on cigarettes in Connecticut to $3 is supposed to serve as a deterrent to smoking — the average cost of a carton now is $84. One New Hartford man was inspired, not to quit but to enterprise, by the increase. Robert Cockcroft was arrested Nov. 3 by New Milford Police, according to the Torrington Register Citizen, for third-degree burglary and first-degree larceny. Cockcroft's friend alerted police that she thought it was strange he had 15 packs of cigarettes when he was a non-smoker. Police say Cockcroft allegedly admitted to her he climbed through the window of a convenience store Oct. 22 and witnesses said he was selling packs on the New Milford Green for $5. The store owner reported more than 38 cartons missing at a value of $11,403. At his arraignment Nov. 4, Cockcroft was ordered held on $15,000 bond.

All of the information contained in the Advocate's police blotter comes from police reports or officials, or has been shamelessly swiped from other published accounts. Individuals charged have not been independently investigated by the Advocate. All those arrested are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law.