Drug-Filled Fanny Pack Led To Dux Gun Arrest

The gun was stashed beneath a nearby mop bucket. It was not inside an unzipped, drug-filled fanny pack.

New Haven Police Officer Derek Huelsman made that discovery during a late-night search of Dux Market at 1361 Chapel St. on Sept. 10.

The firearm find led to the arrest of a 22-year-old man on a host of charges, including criminal possession of a firearm, carrying a pistol without a permit, interfering with an officer, and possession of a controlled substance.

The details of the police work that led to the arrest are laid out in a two-page reporting officer narrative written by city police Det. Thomas Glynn. The write-up shines a light on some of the on-the-scene deduction and follow up work that goes into taking guns off the street.

The man arrested on these charges has not yet entered any pleas in the case. He is next slated to appear in court on the matter on Oct. 6.

During a Monday morning crime-related press briefing on the third floor of police headquarters, Interim Police Chief Renee Dominguez cited that police work as a recent example of a successful gun arrest. 

So far this year, Dominguez said, city police have seized 146 guns and made 144 gun-related arrests. She also said that there have been 55 incidents of gunfire in the city since Sept. 14. (See more below for a roundup of other recent gun-related arrests and other updates from the police chief.)

A Fanny Pack, A Mop Bucket, & A Hidden Gun

According to Glynn’s write-up, he and fellow city Shooting Task Force members Officer Way and the late Officer Joshua Castellano were driving in an unmarked police vehicle equipped with lights and sirens on Chapel Street near Kensington Street at around 10:59 p.m. on Sept. 10.

The three officers observed two men standing in front of Dux Market. As the police vehicle passed, one of the men — with a black fanny pack draped around his body — ran into the store.

The three officers, clad in police vests, followed.

Det. Glynn walked to the rear of the store, where he found the man with the fanny pack hiding next to a bathroom and a mop bucket in an employees-only section of the market.

The detective handcuffed the man.

“I immediately looked down at the fanny pack [he] was wearing, and observed the fanny pack to be unzipped and wide open,” Glynn wrote. ​“In plain view inside the fanny pack I observed packaged narcotics. Based on my training and experience as a Police Officer I know people store narcotics and firearms inside fanny packs. Based on the fact that [he] still had packaged narcotics inside the fanny pack, it was apparent to me that he opened up the fanny pack and discarded a firearm somewhere in the rear of the store where I located him.”

So Glynn started searching the area. First the bathroom, then a garbage can inside the bathroom. No luck finding any guns.

While he searched, the handcuffed man ​“attempted to run out of the back room of the store and exit the front of the store.”

Officers Way and Castellano chased after him. Castellano tackled him before he made it to the store’s entrance.

Several other officers then arrived on scene. They stopped three other men who were ​“loitering in front of the store,” and handcuffed one who initially refused to give his name. ​“All three were negative or active arrest warrants and were released from the scene without incident.”

Meanwhile, Glynn, Det. Francisco Sanchez, and Officer Huelsman, continued searching the area where the man with the fanny pack had been hiding.

Under a mop bucket approximately three feet from where Glynn and Officer Way had handcuffed that man, Officer Huelsman found a black semi-automatic handgun.

Glynn and Lt. Derek Werner reviewed surveillance video footage on scene that showed the man with the fanny pack running inside and entering a back room where Glynn had ultimately found him. Glynn and Castellano asked the clerk if he owned a firearm or if a firearm was stored inside the store. The clerk said neither was the case.

A NHPD records search showed that the man had an active arrest warrant for violation of probation for a separate case. The man has also previously been convicted of a felony.

Inside the fanny pack, Glynn and Way found two clear tied bags each containing roughly 8 grams of ​“a white rock like substance” that, when tested, tested positive for cocaine. The fanny pack also contained eight oxycodone pills, and one Northyx 15md pill.

City police then arrested and charged the man for a variety of gun and drug-related offenses.

Roundup: Terminal 110 Liquor Permit Suspended

Also at Monday’s press briefing, Chief Dominguez provided updates on a variety of other shootings and gun-related arrests in the city. Those included:

• City police have arrested a 52-year-old man for an allegedly shooting and injuring someone on Sept. 19 near Davenport Avenue and Baldwin Street in the Hill. While ​“the motive is unknown,” Dominguez said, ​“the shooter is known to the victim.” City police have charged the man with first-degree assault, criminal possession of a firearm, and reckless endangerment, among other charges. He has not yet entered any pleas in the case.

• The city police Shooting Task Force is still investigating a drive-by shooting that took place near Lincoln-Bassett School in Newhallville on Sept. 14. That shooting occurred while students were outside playing on recess. No one was injured, but the school did go into lockdown ​“for a brief time.” Dominguez said that video surveillance shows that one vehicle was shooting at another as they drove up Shelton Avenue. Dominguez said that eight rounds were fired from around Shelton Avenue and Ivy Street through Shelton Avenue and Huntington Street.

• The state has pulled the liquor permit for Terminal 110 at 240 Sargent Dr. after two separate shootings took place at the Long Wharf club.

The first shooting occurred on Sept. 5. The Shooting Task Force is investigating.

In a Friday letter written to the state Department of Consumer Protection’s Liquor Control Division requesting a summary suspension of Terminal 110’s liquor permit, Dominguez wrote that ​“there were multiple gunshots in front of the club during its let out” during that first incident.

“Officers were unable to locate any suspects due to the large crowd but noticed [that] three vehicles within the club parking lot had been struck by gunfire.”

After securing a crime scene, officers found three spent 23mm shell casings, 24 spent 9mm casings, one live 9mm round, and two bullet fragments.

“This is an extensive number of rounds fired in a populated area that could have led to a mass casualty incident.”

Dominguez wrote in that same letter that the second incident occurred on Sept. 23 at approximately 12:22 a.m.

Officer Diamond Dickerson was working an extra duty assignment when he was alerted by a bouncer that there was a large fight inside the club, and that the club was about to kick everyone out.

“The bouncer informed Officer Dickerson that he was worried that the incident was going to continue outside and there would be further problems.”

As Dickerson headed towards the club entrance, he heard three gunshots in the parking lot area.

Shortly after the gunshots, Dickerson saw a white Honda Accord fleeing the area.

Officer Natalie Crosby, while en route to respond to the gunfire at the club, also saw the Honda Accord fleeing onto Long Wharf Drive. She turned on her police vehicle’s emergency lights and siren to conduct a motor vehicle stop. But the car didn’t stop.

After disregarding the police officer’s orders to stop for several miles, the Honda Accord’s driver ultimately stopped on Greenwich Avenue near Third Street in the Hill. Two men exited the vehicle and, after a short foot pursuit, city police apprehended one of those men — who appeared to be suffering from a gunshot wound to his groin area.

City police subsequently arrested the Honda Accord’s driver for not pulling over in response to the police orders to stop.

While receiving medical treatment at Yale New Haven Hospital, the man who had been shot told police he was at a party at Terminal 110, and that a fight that started inside spilled into the parking lot.

“He stated he heard gunshots and realized he was shot. He then entered his Honda, which was being driven by an unknown male and occupied by several other males not known to him. He did not recall any other details, only that he was trying to get medical attention.”

Back at the scene of the shooting, police found one .380 fired cartridge casing and an Acura SUV that had been struck by gunfire. The club’s manager agreed to provide surveillance footage to detectives the following day, though no witnesses came forward to report the incident or provide details about the shooting.

“This is the second major incident this month involving gunfire.”

Later on Sept. 24, the state’s consumer protection commissioner issued a summary suspension of the club’s liquor permit.

“I am appreciative that the New Haven Police Department brought this matter to my attention and believe that this immediate suspension is justified and necessary to address this very serious situation,” state DCP Commissioner Michelle H. Seagull is quoted as saying in a Friday afternoon email press release. ​“The occurrence of two shootings at this venue in a matter of weeks is a huge threat to public safety and highlights the need for better control of the premise by our permittees. People should feel safe entering any facility that holds one of our licenses.”

The suspension means that Terminal 110 cannot serve alcohol until further notice.