Police: Burglar Confronted by Homeowner, Flees, Gets Caught

Editor's note, 9:34 a.m., Wednesday: This article, originally published Tuesday evening, April 23, 2013, has been revised with statements from Detective Mark Cappelli.

A man forced his way into a Weeds Landing house early Tuesday afternoon, was confronted by the homeowner, fled and was later identified and arrested in Stamford, according to Darien police.

Police gave this account of the incident and arrest (with Darien Patch's additional reporting about the police account in parentheses):

At about 12:40 p.m., a man living at Weeds Landing told police he had confronted a burglar who had forced his way into the man's home. He said that when he approached the burglar, later identified as Clarence Patterson, 53, of Bridgeport, the man fled on foot toward the Post Road.

Police got a description of the suspect's vehicle and relayed that description to police in neighboring communities.

(A department news release Tuesday evening did not explain how police got a description of the vehicle. Darien Police Detective Mark Cappelli, said Wednesday morning in an email: "Jenkins was driving the vehicle. At this point regarding the identification of the vehicle, we are stating that an investigation led to the vehicle.")

Stamford police spotted the vehicle, stopped it and Patterson was taken into custody. Further investigation by Darien police led to the arrest of Patterson and Amber Jenkins, 30, of Stamford.

(Whatever role Jenkins had in the matter was not explained in a department news release. When asked about that and about how police got the description of the vehicle, Cappelli answered only with the response quoted above.)

Patterson, of Hawley Avenue in Bridgeport, and Jenkins, of Franklin Street in Stamford, were each charged with second-degree burglary, conspiracy to commit second-degree burglary and third-degree criminal mischief. Patterson was held on a $20,000 bond and Jenkins was released on a promise to appear in court. Both are scheduled to appear May 6 in state Superior Court in Stamford.