Woman, 59, Robbed Of Purse At Knifepoint: Hamden Police

HAMDEN, CT — Two people have been arrested in connection with the knifepoint robbery of a woman early Friday morning in Hamden, according to police. At about 6:20 a.m. on Jan. 24, an officer saw a vehicle heading south on Whitney Avenue with "defective equipment," according to Capt. Ronald Smith.

Smith said the officer tried to conduct a motor vehicle stop, however, the driver failed to comply and the vehicle crashed on Bedford Street. One of the vehicle’s two occupants ran from the scene. Smith said that police were not in pursuit at the time of the crash.

Shortly thereafter, Hamden Police were notified of a robbery that had occurred in the parking lot of 2335 Dixwell Avenue. The 59-year-old victim was approached by a knife-wielding man who demanded her purse.

The man then “grabbed” her purse from a shopping cart, according to Smith. The man then got in a vehicle that was driven by another person. The vehicle was last seen fleeing toward Skiff Street, according to Smith.

“Investigation revealed that the occupants of the vehicle that had crashed on Bedford Street were responsible for the knifepoint robbery,” Smith wrote in a press release. “They were promptly arrested and transported to police headquarters. It was later determined that the vehicle that they were traveling in was reported stolen in Madison.”

Kenzell Goodman, 25, of Pond Lilly Street in New Haven, was arrested on charges of first-degree robbery, conspiracy to commit first-degree robbery, second-degree larceny and interfering with a police officer. Goodman, who was detained on a $25,000 bond, is scheduled to appear in Meriden Superior Court on Feb. 6.

Rhyiashia Beall, 19, of Munson Street in New Haven, was charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree robbery and second-degree larceny. Beall, who was detained on a $25,000 bond, is scheduled to appear in Meriden Superior Court on Feb. 6.