Man Caught Shooting BB Gun, Carrying Knife On Road: Vernon PD

VERNON, CT — An East Hartford man armed with a BB gun and knife is accused of shooting off the gun while wandering down a street in the Rockville section of Vernon, police said.

At 12:49 p.m. on Aug. 24, police received a call about a shirtless man wearing a backpack shooting a BB gun on Mountain Street, according to an arrest report. Police found the man, identified as 21-year-old Willie Nieves, on Mountain Street and Nieves, who was shooting BBs into the woods, immediately put the gun down on a set of stairs when he saw officers arrive, according to an arrest report.

Police confiscated the BB gun and a "spring loaded knife" they found clipped onto Nieves' waist band at the scene, according to an arrest report. He also had a container of copper BBS, a crack "push rod" and a crack pipe that tested positive for the drug in the backpack, according to an arrest report.

Nieves was charged with two counts of carrying a dangerous weapon, second-degree reckless endangerment and the use drug paraphernalia. His initial $20,000 bond was reduced to $5,000 at his Aug. 25 arraignment and he remained in custody Monday after failing to post bail, judicial system records indicate. He is due back in court Dec. 30, records show.