Newport Police Log: Stolen Goods Found for Sale on Craigslist

Police Retrieve Stolen Fishing Reels After Found for Sale on Craigslist

Kristi Carfora, 25, of 7 Pearl St. Apt. B in Newport, was arrested around 8:10 p.m. Monday on a felony charge of receiving stolen goods.

Around 5 p.m., officers were informed that a man was in the front lobby to report that two of his fishing reels were stolen on Oct. 23 and that he'd just found one — a Van Staal 250 — for sale on Craigslist. The man said both reels were stolen off a vehicle roof rack in front of his home.

Police decided to attempt to purchase the reel off Craigslist, so they contacted the number listed and arranged to meet a girl named Kristi at the Dunkin Donuts on Broadway at 8 p.m. Around 7:30 p.m., Carfora called to ask to meet sooner. An officer met her near the Dunkin Donuts and she handed him a reel that matched the one stolen. Other officers then approached and detained her. The victim brought the original box to the station and showed that the serial number on the box matched the one on the reel.

Carfora said her ex-boyfriend had asked her to sell the reel for him online, saying that he'd bought it from a guy in Providence for $150 and that he'd said she could keep half the money if she sold it. Carfora said the reels were being kept at the man's new girlfriend's house. She denied knowing the property was stolen. Carfora then called the new girlfriend to confirm that another reel matching the other one stolen — a Shimano Spheros reel — was also there.

Police looked online and determined that the reel Carfora attempted to sell goes for between $400 and $500 used. Thus, they decided to charge her with receiving stolen goods under $500. She was released with a Second District Court date of Nov. 24.

Officers then responded to the new girlfriend's home, where they picked up the other reel. The woman told police that her boyfriend had claimed to have bought both of the reels from someone at the state pier.

Domestic Charges

Tony H. King, 20, of 12 Green Lane in Middletown, was arrested around 11:03 a.m. Monday on charges of domestic simple assault and domestic vandalism.

Police responded to an apartment on Gould Street after receiving a report of a disturbance there. Upon arrival, they met with a woman who said King, the father of her child, had just assaulted her during an argument. Officers went inside the apartment and saw broken glass on the living room, a lamp turned over and several other items strewn about. The woman said she'd been at work when she began receiving threatening text messages from King. She arrived home, where the fight ensued, and he left with their 2-year-old daughter. Police located King with the child in an adjacent driveway and arrested him on the charges.

The above reports detail arrests made by the  from Monday Nov. 15, through the early morning hours of Tuesday Nov. 16. Descriptions of all events are based solely on police officer reports provided to Patch.