A playlist on a stolen iPod and a freshly smoked cigarette helped cops connect an Ansonia man to an early morning burglary spree in Derby.
The man, 21-year-old Devon Miller, of Hodge Avenue in Ansonia, was arrested Sept. 3 and arraigned at Superior Court in Derby, where Judge Peter Brown ordered him held on bonds totaling $300,000.
Police in Derby and Ansonia consider Miller the prime suspect in a series of residential burglaries that had Ansonia hilltop residents on edge over the summer and triggered the formation of a neighborhood watch there.
Miller has yet to be charged with a crime in Ansonia, but police said they’re building a case.
“The ultimate goal is to get an arrest warrant or warrants. I can’t tell you when that is going to happen, but (detectives) are moving along,” Ansonia Police Chief Kevin Hale said last week. “We’re not going to rush this, obviously.”
Meanwhile, Derby police have submitted arrest warrants which are being reviewed by the court. That could result in more charges for Miller.
A police report in one of Miller’s cases indicate Derby cops believe he may also be connected to an Aug. 23 Derby break-in.
Both Hale and Derby Police Lt. Justin Stanko said last week they believe Miller acted alone.
“There is no evidence to suggest that anyone else entered a residence,” Stanko said.
There have been no additional reports of overnight burglaries on Ansonia’s hilltop or Derby’s east side.
“We have not had any burglaries or suspicious activity calls since the arrest in Derby,” Hale said.
Miller remains in custody at the McDougall-Walker Correctional Institution on two counts each of attempted first-degree burglary, third-degree criminal mischief, and sixth-degree larceny, as well as single counts of first-degree burglary and second-degree burglary.
Break-Ins Reported
Miller is suspected of four burglaries or attempted burglaries in Derby Sept. 3.
Here is what Derby police say happened, according to the documents on file at Superior Court in Derby.
About 5:15 a.m., a Hickory Drive resident called police to report that someone had broken into their residence.
About 45 minutes later, a resident of Kings Court called cops saying someone had just tried to break into their home by pushing an air conditioner through a window.
Cops responded to Kings Court — only to get yet another call at about 6:10 a.m. from a Sunset Drive resident who said someone had tried to break into their home, too.
The Kings Court resident gave police a description of the burglary suspect, so Ansonia and Derby cops began to search the area.
Officers saw a man fitting the description running through backyards, then on Sunset Drive headed in the direction of Iannotti Lane.
The suspect was apprehended by Ansonia Police Officer Mark Guillet and identified as Miller. Ansonia police had a heavy presence on their side of the hilltop because there had been so many burglaries there.
’Come in, I’ve got something for you’
The Sunset Drive resident told cops he had been lying in bed about 4:45 a.m. when he heard a noise outside and then saw someone trying to push an air conditioner through a window.
The resident told police he yelled “Come on in, I’ve got something for you,” to the would-be burglar, who then ran away.
Cops also determined shoe prints outside the Sunset Drive home were similar to the shoes Miller had on when he was taken into custody.
Miller was charged with attempted first-degree burglary and third-degree criminal mischief in that case.
In the Hickory Drive break-in, a resident reported that about 4:45 a.m. the resident’s dog began growling. The resident discovered a door he had left open had been closed, a table moved, and a pack of his wife’s cigarettes missing.
During the foot chase during which Miller was nabbed, cops said he dropped the same pack of cigarettes as he ran from cops.
Police also found a “freshly smoked” cigarette from the same brand outside the burgled Kings Court home.
Miller also had an iPod on him when arrested.
They connected the iPod to a Hillcrest Avenue car break-in reported about 8:20 a.m. after the iPod’s owner, though he didn’t have a receipt or serial number for the device, told cops there’d be a playlist named after his brother on it.
When police looked at the iPod they seized from Miller, police found the playlist on the device.
Miller was scheduled to appear in court Sept. 22.
