Fairfield Cops On Catching Gardner, Alleged Murderer

[Editor's Note: Arrest information is supplied by the Fairfield Police Department. It does not indicate convictions.]

Nobody at the Fairfield Police Department thought that Ruger, the department's new canine police officer, would spend his first day helping track down an

And when his handler, Officer Kevin Wells, received the "ping" from his vehicle's LoJack tracking system, he said knew he was tracking down a stolen vehicle -- but that would escalate to something much more serious.

In fact, several officers, Wells included, ended up finding themselves on first a high-speed car chase to track down a fugitive murder suspect from Massachusetts, and eventually an on-foot pursuit through Southport and into Westport, where the man was taken into custody late Wednesday afternoon.

Thomas Gardner, 35, of New Bedford, Mass., was arrested in Westport and charged with interfering with police, engaging police in pursuit, reckless driving at more than 100 mph, driving a stolen vehicle worth more than $20,000, and being a fugitive from justice, police said. The chase and manhunt involved several police departments -- including Fairfield, Westport, and Norwalk.  

He is also suspected of allegedly murdering the owner of the vehicle he stole in Massachusetts, and is being arraigned at Bridgeport Superior Court today, department spokesperson Lt. Jim Perez said. Gardner was held in lieu of a $500,000 bond.

“This thing was completely successful because of community involvement,” Perez said.

In fact, after leading police on a car chase from the I-95 Fairfield rest stop to the Winslow Park in Westport -- where Gardner crashed the car -- and then on foot from the Southport train station and back into Westport, the day culminated in a few residents who recognized the suspect and pointed him out to police outside the Organic Market on Post Road East in Westport.

“Kudos to the citizens who reported him and basically handed him over to police,” Perez said.

Though Gardner put up a struggle during his arrest, he was successfully taken into custody. Later in the evening, he was transported to St. Vincent’s Medical Center to examine wrist injuries he sustained after falling from a ceiling in a Westport building, where he was hiding for a short time Wednesday, police said.

No civilians were injured during the hours-long pursuit, Perez said. One Westport officer was brushed by Gardner’s car, but he is OK and expected to make a full recovery, Perez said.

“This was a win-win-win situation,” he said. “A win for the citizens, a win for the police departments, and a win for the family of the victim.”

Police Chief Gary MacNamara echoed Perez’s sentiments. “Recovering a stolen car is miniscule to having a suspect who may have killed someone in custody,” he said.

Both men hailed the effectiveness of the reverse 911 system used yesterday, which warned Southport residents that a dangerous man was on the loose in the area and to lock their doors and windows.

Gardner had apparently been trying to reach a destination in Pennsylvania, Perez said.

“We foiled his plans a little bit.”