DUI Arrest Leads to Stolen Handgun Charge in New Milford: PD

NEW MILFORD, CT — Police have charged a man with possessing a stolen handgun after stopping him for driving erratically.

On Dec. 16, at around 4:00 a.m., New Milford police officers responded to multiple calls concerning a vehicle that was driving the wrong way in the area of Danbury Road near the New Milford High School. Callers reported having to swerve to avoid a head-on collision with a black SUV that was going south in the north-bound lanes of Danbury Road. Responding officers located the vehicle just south of the Brookfield town line, where an off-duty Federal officer had been able to obtain the keys to the vehicle after the operator had stopped.

With the assistance of the Brookfield Police Department, the vehicle was safely removed from the roadway. The driver, Charles Cameron-Sheffield, 38, of Bridgeport, exhibited numerous indications of being intoxicated, according to police. Cameron-Sheffield was given field-sobriety tests, which he failed. He was placed under arrest for DUI.

A cursory search of Cameron-Sheffield’s vehicle located a 9mm Smith & Wesson handgun and loaded magazine beneath the driver’s seat of the vehicle.

Police learned that Cameron-Sheffield, who was also the registered owner of the vehicle, did not possess a valid Connecticut pistol permit. A subsequent nationwide check using the pistol’s serial number showed that it had been stolen from a person in Georgia.

Cameron-Sheffield was charged with DUI, stealing a firearm, having a weapon in a vehicle, reckless driving, failure to drive in proper lane, and driving the wrong way on a divided highway.

He was held on a $15,000 bond and scheduled to be arraigned in Torrington Superior Court on Dec. 31.