Bridgeport Man Tries To Scam His Way Into Owning Home: PD

WESTPORT, CT — A 41-year-old Bridgeport man was arrested by Westport police on a warrant last week charging him with a host of violations in connection with a scam in which the suspect tried to claim that an undisclosed Westport house was his, according to authorities.

The case began in October 2018 when the department was contacted by a builder/property owner in Westport about a trespassing complaint.

"Arriving officers spoke with the builder/owner of the home, who explained that while in the process of showing the home to a potential buyer, a male subject arrived at the property and walked directly into the residence," wrote Westport police in a statement. "When told to leave, this male claimed that the home belonged to him but ultimately complied and left the area. Before leaving he allegedly provided a business card to the owner with the name Deshawn Harper printed on it. The complainant was able to positively identify this male as Deshawn Harper. He was able to make this identification from a prior arrest made by this department on September 3, 2018, at which time Harper had unlawfully entered this same residence. An arrest warrant was prepared and granted for Harper in connection with this investigation."

About a month later, officers were again called to the same home this time on a report of a burglary, according to authorities.

"It was explained by the homeowner that while inside of the residence he heard a noise coming from a lower floor and believed that Harper was once again within the residence. The home was found to be vacant on this date, however the homeowner relayed that on Saturday November 3, 2018 he had discovered that a window to the home had been tampered with and damaged in an apparent effort to gain entry into the structure," wrote police. "He reported that he had observed several strange things in recent weeks such as lights that were left on by him only to be found turned off by someone else. He also reported that he had found several pieces of mail on the front porch earlier that same day that had been addressed to Deshaun Harper. Among this assorted mail were several bills from a local utility company that were addressed to Harper using the address of that residence. An arrest warrant was [again] prepared and granted for Harper in connection with this investigation."

Last week, Bridgeport police apprehended Deshawn Harper in connection with the two Westport warrants. He was turned over to Westport police and charged with:

• Burglary, 3rd degree (2 Counts)
• Criminal Trespass, 1st degree (3 Counts)
• Criminal Mischief, 2nd degree (2 Counts)

Harper was additionally charged with first-degree failure to appear on unrelated charges. He was held in lieu of bail of $30,000 and was scheduled to be arraigned in Norwalk Superior Court on Sept. 13.