15-Year-Old Robbed Fairfield School Employees With Gun During Cross-State Crime Spree: PD

FAIRFIELD, CT — Charges are pending against a 15-year-old who was traveling in a stolen car with a group of juveniles on a crime spree across the state before the boy robbed two women at gunpoint Wednesday outside The Southport School, police said.

The incident occurred about 7:30 a.m., when two school employees were walking to work on Main Street and the teen approached them, displayed a handgun, and demanded they turn over their phones and bags, according to Fairfield police. The women complied and fled into the school, which was briefly placed in a “secure school” condition, although no one was hurt, police said.

The suspect fled toward Harbor Road and left the area in a vehicle, according to police.

Authorities announced Thursday that a 15-year-old with a prior arrest record and a “take into custody” order out of New Haven had been identified as the robber. The boy was taken into custody Wednesday evening by New Haven police and charges were pending Thursday, officials said.

Prior to the robbery in Fairfield, the teen had been with a group of juveniles traveling in a vehicle stolen from New Haven, according to police. The group committed an armed robbery in Clinton, and a carjacking and an armed robbery in Branford, before the 15-year-old robbed the women in Southport, police said. The group then attempted a carjacking in Norwalk, according to police.

“Law enforcement in Fairfield and throughout the state have been working in overdrive to combat juvenile crime trends, but until these individuals are held accountable for their actions, this behavior will continue,” Fairfield Chief Robert Kalamaras said in a news release. “I commend our officers for their diligence and ability to identify the individual responsible in such a timely manner. It is a testament to the quality of officers we have here in Fairfield and throughout the state.”

First Selectwoman Brenda Kupchick called on Gov. Ned Lamont to request a special legislative session to address juvenile justice laws.

“It is fortunate that no one was injured in these incidents, but if this isn’t a wakeup call to the state legislature that they need to review the current laws surrounding juvenile justice, I don’t know what is,” she said in the news release. “The residents of Fairfield, along with residents across the state are rightfully concerned when a 15-year-old, with prior records, is carrying a gun and pointing it at teachers and other individuals throughout the state. The current laws are allowing criminals a free pass and are putting Fairfield residents in danger.”