Stamford Cops Bust Suspect in Mugging of Autistic Man

Stamford Police arrested a city man on Monday in connection with last week’s mugging of an autistic man near Veterans Park — an incident that prompted police and the public to make donations to the victim.

On Sept. 9, a 27-year-old autistic man was approached near the Olde Main Street shops which are adjacent to Veterans Park. The suspect, identified as a black man, quickly befriended the victim who mentioned that he had $100 from his birthday and that he was going into the Stamford Town Center mall to buy video games.

At this point the male removed the money from his hand, taunted him and then ran off with the $100 cash from the victim. The suspect then took off running towards Atlantic Street. Patrol units converged on the area and were unable to locate the suspect. Video surveillance was obtained from the area and a video production was put out to the news organizations in an effort to identify the suspect.

In a statement, Stamford Police said Monday afternoon, “Over the weekend we received several leads regarding the identity of the suspect due to the release of the video. Stamford Police BCI (Bureau of Criminal Investigations) took over the investigation and through numerous investigative techniques identified Steven St. Jacques, 27, as the suspect.” Police obtained a search warrant for St. Jacques’ residence at 49 Durant St. and an article of clothing that was depicted in the video was seized, police said.

With this information St. Jacques went to police headquarters and admitted his involvement in the theft. On Sept. 15, St. Jacques was arrested and charged with second-degree larceny. His bond of $50,000 was set by state Superior Court. His past record shows arrests for an Assault and a Robbery.

On Monday, police held a press conference at headquarters to announce the arrest and to present the victim with the donations that were collected. The police department and Stamford Police Association gave the man more than $1,000 in donations collected over the last several days.

Photo: Steven St. Jacques. Credit: Stamford Police Department.