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Wheel thieves struck again in East Rock, but took only a quarter of their usual haul.
A woman who lives on Edwards Street woke up Saturday to find that thieves had made off with the right rear wheel of her Subaru Outback, leaving the car sitting partially on a milk crate.
The wheel theft was the second in two days to hit Edwards Street. Someone stole all the wheels off a Toyota Venza overnight Thursday.
East Rock has seen a rash of wheel thefts in recent months, but the thieves have usually targeted Honda Fits. And they usually take all four wheels.
It’s unclear whey the thieves would have taken only one wheel from the Subaru. They may have been interrupted mid-heist.
Police have encouraged car owners to use locking lug nuts on their wheels.
In other police news, according to police spokesman Officer David Hartman:
Stabbing: At 12:41 p.m. on Saturday, Officers Salvatore Rodriguez, Carlos Ortiz and Luis Rivera responded to a report of a stabbing near the corner of Columbus Avenue and Ell Grasso Boulevard.
They found a shirtless 21-year-old victim in front of the Columbus House shelter on the Boulevard. He had suffered a 18-inch-long laceration “from one armpit to the other.”
The man told police that he had been at a female friend’s house when her ex-boyfriend showed up. The woman told her ex to leave. The ex got mad and threw a cup and plate out the back door. Eventually he left with a DVR, the woman’s wallet, and a bag of frozen chicken.
The victim and the woman went looking for the ex-boyfriend. When they found him and demanded the return of the stolen items, the ex-boyfriend pulled out a knife and swung at the victim.
Police put out a description of the ex-boyfriend and Officers Rob Strickland, Ryan Macuirznski and Sergeant Sean Mahr spotted the man running behind a nearby diner. He had blood on him. Police arrested him and recovered the wallet, the DVR, and the frozen chicken from a nearby Dumpster.
Police charged the man with assault, burglary, and larceny.
“El Diablo” Repelled: A 27-year-old told cops Saturday that a man known as “El Diablo,” tried to stab him, causing a small cut. The man successfully fought off El Diablo.
Gun, Body Armor Recovered: On Friday, members of the Statewide Narcotics Task Force arrested a 33-year-old on drug charges. After the arrest, police searched the man’s apartment and found a loaded Norinco 9mm handgun hidden under a mattress in a sock, along with a bunch of cash. Cops also found crack and body armor. Police added gun, body armor, and more drug crimes to the charges against the man, a convicted felon.
2 Shotguns Recovered: At 2:08 p.m. on Sunday, Officers Nicholas Katz, Nikki Curry, Paul Finch and Lieutenant Nicholas Marcucio responded to an apartment on Butler Street on a threatening complaint. A man with a knife and a gun, who lived upstairs at the same address, was threatening someone in the building.
Police found a loaded Remington 870 Tactical 12 gauge shotgun inside a common hallway. Police knocked on an apartment door and two men let them inside. They found a 27-year-old man sitting on a couch, on top of a New England Firearms Pardner-Model SB1 .410 gauge shotgun. Police found shotgun shells and four bags of marijuana inside the man’s bedroom.
Police charged the man, a convicted felon, with gun and drug crimes.
Police found the man who had allegedly made the threats hidden inside a third-floor closet. Police let him go after no witnesses implicated him.
Wheel locks are a great investment.