Cheshire Burglary Ring Arrests Pending

Arrests of a burglary ring in Fairfield County will help Cheshire Police clear cases involving stolen property, according to Captain Jay Markella.  

Markella said the Cheshire cases are being handled by Officer Erick Tracy who is preparing arrest warrants. The cases are still under investigation, Markella said, so additional information can't be released yet.

The arrests in Darien led to the discovery of stolen property not only from Cheshire but also Meriden, North Haven, Cromwell, Stratford, Norwalk, Wilton, Westport and Trumbull, according to the Darien Police Department.

The Fairfield County arrests occured on July 20, the report said. Four suspects were charged with a number of counts of burglary:

• Joshua Rivera, 21, of Trumbull, turned himself in at the Darien Police Department on July 23 in response to an arrest warrant. Joshua Rivera is a brother of Nelson Rivera, one of the first men arrested in connection with the burglary spree.

• Qu’amere Brantley, 20, of Bridgeport, turned himself in to the department on July 21. He posted a $50,000 bond and was to have appeared Monday in state Superior Court in Stamford.

Each man is charged with two counts of first-degree burglary—connected with thefts from the house and garage—and 17 counts of third-degree burglary from a motor vehicle. Each also faces charges of conspiracy to commit burglary.

In addition, the in connection with the burglaries—Nelson Rivera and Livelle Sampson—each received new charges accusing them of being involved in most of the other burglaries:

• The new charges against Nelson Rivera are sixteen counts of third-degree burglary from a motor vehicle and one count of first-degree burglary, as well as conspiracy to commit burglary. Rivera posted a $5,000 bond and is scheduled to appear Aug. 3 in state Superior Court in Stamford.

• Sampson's new charges are 17 counts of third-degree burglary from a motor vehicle, one count of first-degree burglary and conspiracy to commit burglary.

Darien police did not name the fifth person they say they expect to arrest.

Editor's note: The Cheshire arrest information and details on the stolen property will be posted on Cheshire Patch as soon as it's available.