Crime & Safety

Man Charged with Swiping Wallet at Fairfield Grocery Store

Eddie Navarro, 55, had reportedly been jailed for a similar crime in Stamford, police said.

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

A Bridgeport man was charged with sixth-degree larceny Tuesday for allegedly swiping a woman's wallet in May, police said.

According to the police report, Eddie Navarro, 55, took the woman's purse while she was shopping at the Kings Highway Cutoff on May 13. The complainant, a Trumbull resident, said she had noticed a white male wearing glasses leaning over her shopping cart, but she thought he was reaching for something on an nearby shelf.

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Video surveillance revealed the suspect had actually filched her wallet from her purse. The wallet contained cash, bank cards, identification, and health insurance cards, according to the report.

Days after the report was filed, a John Doe recovered the wallet in the parking lot of a Duchess Restaurant and turned it into police.

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The department's investigation lead detective to the Bridgeport Rescue Mission, where officers spoke with Navarro's probation officer and then Navarro himself, who reportedly admitted to stealing the wallet, department spokesperson Sgt. Sue Lussier said.

Navarro had reportedly been released from jail days prior to the wallet theft. He was incarcerated for a nearly identical crime reported at a grocery store in Stamford, Lussier said.

The Fairfield warrant for Navarro was served on Tuesday. He was released after posting a $1,500 bond. A court date was not available in the police report.

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A manager at the reported Tuesday that two checks were stolen from the restaurant earlier in July.

According to the report, the manager left the two checks -- totaling $1,592 -- in a box in the rear of the restaurant. They were meant for a delivery the manager was expecting.

The items were delivered and the checks cashed on July 18. However, the person who made the delivery contacted the manager a few days to say his company had never been paid.

The checks were cashed at a People's Bank branch. Police are investigating.

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The supervisor of a landscaping company doing work at reported to police Tuesday that tools were stolen from his truck while on the work site.

According to the report, the supervisor had walked away from his truck for just five minutes and when he returned a leaf blower ($500) and trimmer ($350) had been taken.

This is under investigation.


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