A man suspected in the theft of more than $5,000 worth of electronic devices during a burglary at a Rye Brook elementary school has been arrested in Connecticut, village police said.
Jarrezz Edwards, 34, of Manchester, was taken into custody in East Hartford on Monday, Sept. 29, on unrelated charges and is awaiting extradition to New York.
The burglary at the Bruno M. Ponterio Ridge Street School occurred Sept. 8, a few hours after Back to School night. Police said a single burglar entered the school through a window at about 9:30 pm and left with several iPads, laptops and other equipment about 90 minutes later.
Surveillance photos of the burglar inside the school were circulated within days but it was not clear whether that helped identify Edwards as a suspect. Lt. Christopher Ruhe said the Westchester District Attorney’s Office and county and Manchester, Conn police assisted in the investigation.
Felony complaints charging Edwards with third-degree grand larceny and third-degree burglary were filed in Rye Town Court and an arrest warrant was issued.
According to the complaints by Rye Brook Detective Christian Delarosa, Edwards took two Apple Macbook Air laptops, five Apple iPads, four Apple pencils, four iPad keyboards and two Macbook cases.
An East Hartford police spokesman said Edwards was charged with attempted burglary and resisting arrest Monday morning after police responded to a report that a man had tried to pry his way into a Dollar General store and found Edwards matching the description of the suspect given by a store employee. He is being held on $100,000 bail and a fugitive charge awaiting extraditon to New York.
The school burglary was not detected until staff arrived the morning of Sept. 9. Rye Brook police Chief Eric Dengler said that was a concern and that he would be meeting with Blind Brook school Superintendent Brian Alm about it on Wednesday.
At a Board of Education meeting Sept. 16, Alm said that the schools’ security procedures and protocols were “helpful”. He would not elaborate on how or what security upgrades might be in store, citing “the confidentiality necessary to ensure our protocols remain effective.”
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Suspect in Rye Brook elementary school burglary arrested in Connecticut
Reporting by Jonathan Bandler, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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