Two Men From Stratford Arrested in Thefts in Cheshire and Southington

Two Stratford residents are facing burglary and larceny charges stemming from the theft of more than $120,000 worth of scrap metal from a Southington business late last year. 

Southington police served warrants on Jeffrey Carofano, of 403 Woodstock Ave. in Stratford, and Dominick Colangelo Jr., of 190 Park St. in Stratford, this week after an investigation into theft from the Supreme Lake Manufacturing Company on Atwater Street in Southington. 

Carofano, 40, and Coangelo, 43, have each been arraigned on charges of conspiracy to commit second-degree burglary and conspiracy to commit first-degree larceny, court officials said, and remain in custody in lieu of a $250,000 bond.

Detectives began investigating the theft in December after workers with Supreme Lake Manufacturing arrived to find the company had been victims of a break-in. The two men had gone to the Atwater Street business overnight, a police report said, and took a variety of metals totaling $120,000 that were later sold.

The business is located just a short distance from Interstate 84 and Interstate 691 in Plantsville.

Scrap metal theft has not been a major problem in Southington, Sgt. Lowell DePalma said earlier this year, but industrial companies have been targets statewide due to metal prices and economic struggles.

Although Coangelo does not have a criminal record, Carofano is facing charges in similar cases out of Cheshire from January 2011 and West Haven in October 2010 according to court records. Carofado also has pending cases for sixth-degree larceny in Milford and domestic charges in Stratford, court records showed. 

In Cheshire, Carafano has been arrested in connection with nighttime thefts in January at industrial businesses there. 

As part of the investigation last winter, the Cheshire Police circulated a photo taken by a security camera at one of the businesses allegedly targeted by Carofano. The thefts occurred on the northern end of Peck Lane and Schoolhouse Road. The Southington thefts were in Plantsville village, just over the Cheshire town line and near Interstate 84.

The number of thefts in Cheshire was significant enough that the police department held a forum in mid-February for business owners who had been affected by the crimes. 

"In this economy, businesses can't afford burglaries, certainly not repeated burglaries," police spokesman Lt. James Fasano said at the time.

Police said it is unknown if there are any other pending investigations involving scrap metal theft in the surrounding area.

Both men are due back in Bristol Superior Court in May and could present a plea to the charges at that time, court records showed.