Gunshots Fired on Fairfield Beach Road Early Today Rattle Residents

Five gunshots fired into the air on Fairfield Beach Road early this morning after a motorist exchanged words with pedestrians rattled residents who called police and First Selectman Ken Flatto's office with questions about the incident.

No one was injured and the motorist who fired the shots from a pistol escaped, police said.

Police said an unidentified man in a silver, four-door Mazda exchanged words with several pedestrians in the 1000 block of Fairfield Beach Road about 12:55 a.m. then stuck his hand out the window, asked who wanted to "get real," and fired five shots into the air.

The motorist then drove off, eluding a police perimeter that had been set up to try to catch him, police said. A broadcast was put to area departments about the incident, but police in other jurisdictions also couldn't find the suspect.

"We stopped several vehicles that were matching that description but failed to discover any type of weapon or matching descriptors," said Police Sgt. James Perez, a department spokesman. "We have an entire team that's working on this call to try to identify the vehicle and the persons involved and to collect whatever evidence might be found at the scene."

Perez said there wasn't a particular party going on at Fairfield Beach, which is a popular rental spot for Fairfield University students, and that the incident took place behind the Seagrape Cafe, a longtime neighborhood bar frequented by college students.

Police said patrol officers were in the 600 block of Fairfield Beach Road and quickly arrived on scene, but the motorist had fled before they got there. A pursuit did not take place, Perez said.

Perez said it was unclear if the people who exchanged words with the motorist knew the motorist and that police did not know yet if anyone else was in the Mazda because it had tinted windows.

"It is an isolated incident and something we take very seriously and are investigating fully," Perez said. "Needless to say, we have extra patrols in the area and our officers will be fully briefed on what took place."

Police were alerted to the incident by several 911 calls at the same time, Perez said.

Anyone with information on the incident is asked to call the Fairfield Police Department's Detective Division at 203-254-4840.