Too Fast For Conditions

Newtown Police report Sarah Santucci, 34, of Ridgefield, operating a 2016 Land Rover Range Rover, was traveling eastbound on Blakeslee Drive at 12:40 pm January 6. Her vehicle began to slide on the newly fallen snow and the vehicle left the roadway and struck a utility pole.

No injuries were reported. The vehicle was towed.

Santucci was issued a verbal warning for traveling too fast for conditions.

Incident In Intersection

Newtown Police report Barry Moller, 68, of Newtown, operating a 2017 Toyota Prius, was traveling traveling northbound on Taunton Lane at 5:22 pm January 9. James Lantowski, 47, of Stratford, operating a 2019 Ford Escape, was westbound on Mt Pleasant Road. Lantowski came to a stop for the stop sign at the intersection of Mt Pleasant Road. Lantowski started to make a left turn onto Taunton Lane and then Moller started to make a left turn onto Mt Pleasant Road and the two vehicles made contact.

No injuries were reported. Moller’s vehicle was towed.

Moller was issued a written warning for failure to grant right of way at a stop sign.

Struck Mailbox And Tree

Newtown Police report Dylan Brainard, 22, of Stratford, operating a 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee, was traveling eastbound on Dinglebrook Lane at 6:36 am January 11. Brainard’s vehicle slid off the eastbound side of Dinglebrook Lane in snowy conditions, and struck a mailbox before striking a tree.

No injuries were reported. The vehicle was towed.

Brainard was issued a verbal warning for traveling too fast for conditions.

Hit Car Exiting Lot

Newtown Police report Jake Harding, 20, of Danbury, operating a 2024 Toyota Sienna, was exiting a parking lot on Hawleyville Road at 12:01 pm January 13. Michael Neiman, 79, of Newtown, operating a 2005 GMC Sierra, was traveling northbound on Hawleyville Road, with his right turn signal on to turn into the Hawleyville Fire Department driveway. Harding thought Neiman was entering the lot he was exiting and turned into traffic, and struck Neiman’s vehicle.

No injuries were reported. Neither vehicle was towed.

Harding was issued an infraction for making a restricted turn.

Attempting To Elude Officer

Newtown Police report that at 12:45 pm January 13, the department received a notification that a stolen motor vehicle was traveling in Newtown. An officer was able to locate the vehicle, and the operator attempted to elude the officer by pulling into a parking lot on South Main Street and exiting the vehicle.

Officers were able to take the suspect into custody and later identified him as Mark Vaughns, 41, of Danbury. Vaughns was charged with operating a motor vehicle without a license and larceny of a motor vehicle — first offense. He was released on a $1,000 bond with a court date of January 28 in Danbury Superior Court.

Rear-Ended At Highway Exit

Newtown Police report Addyson Bullen, 20, of West Simsbury, operating a 2011 Ford Focus, was traveling westbound on the Interstate 84 exit 11 off-ramp at 7:18 am January 14. Jessica Weizer, 37, of Brookfield, operating a 2017 Honda CR-V, was stopped at the red traffic light on the Interstate 84 off-ramp in front of Bullen’s vehicle. Bullen rear-ended Weizer’s vehicle.

No injuries were reported. Bullen’s vehicle was towed.

Bullen was given a verbal warning for following too close.

Did Not Heed Stop Sign

Newtown Police report Rosa Brito, 45, of Danbury, operating a 2020 Chevrolet Equinox, was traveling northbound on Hattertown Road at 12:12 pm January 14. Connor Byrne, 23, of Weston, operating a 2006 Toyota Camry, was traveling eastbound on Poverty Hollow Road and came to a stop for the stop sign at the intersection with Hattertown Road. Byrne began to head towards Key Rock Road when Brito went through the stop sign on Hattertown Road and struck his vehicle.

No injuries were reported. Neither vehicle was towed.

Brito was issued an infraction for failure to grant right of way at a stop sign.

Arrested On Warrant

Newtown Police report Russell Gayle, 26, of Beaufort, N.C., was arrested on January 15 on the charges of reckless driving in a construction zone, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs while in a construction zone, and following unreasonably close. The arrest stems from an incident at 5:35 pm August 25, 2024, in regards to a three-motor-vehicle accident on Berkshire Road. The police continued investigations following the incident and the warrant was a result.

Gayle was released on a $5,000 bond with a court date of January 28 in Danbury Superior Court.

Illegal Sexual Contact With Minor Charge

Newtown Police arrested Libor Karas, 52, of Newtown, at 4:04 pm January 16 on the charge of illegal sexual contact with a victim less than 16 years of age. He was held on a $150,000 bond with a court date of January 17 in Danbury Superior Court.

Improper U-Turn

Newtown Police report Christopher DiCostanzo, 39, of Seymour, was traveling westbound on Berkshire Road and parked on the shoulder waiting for traffic to clear to make a U-turn at 9:58 am January 18. Caroline Brannon, 21, of Sandy Hook, operating a 2014 Lincoln MKX, made a left turn onto Berkshire Road from Johnny Appleseed Drive and started traveling westbound. DiConstanzo made a left turn crossing over the double yellow lines and into the eastbound lane, the started to back up into the westbound lane. The trailer hitch of DiConstanzo’s vehicle made contact with Brannon’s vehicle.

No injuries were reported. Neither vehicle was towed.

DiConstanzo was issued a written warning for making an improper U-turn and unsafe backing.

Hit Unoccupied Car

Newtown Police report Emre Sariaydin, 24, of West Haven, operating a 2021 Ford Transit T-350, was backing out of a driveway on Hattertown Road at 11:42 am January 19. An unoccupied 2018 Ram 3500 owned by Sarah DeJesus was parked alongside Sariaydin’s vehicle in the driveway. Sariaydin’s vehicle struck DeJesus’ vehicle.

No injuries were reported. Neither vehicle was towed.

No enforcement action was taken since the incident occurred on private property.

Rear-Ended Car On South Main

Newtown Police report Erica Dian, 20, of Woodbury, operating a 2016 Honda Civic, was traveling southbound on South Main Street at 7:52 am January 20. She was traveling behind a 2022 Mazda 3 operated by Quinton Lamendola, 30, of Newtown. Lamendola slowed in traffic and Dian was unable to stop in time due to wet road conditions, and rear-ended Lamendola’s vehicle.

No injuries were reported. Neither vehicle was towed.

Dian was issued a written warning for traveling too fast for conditions and failure to drive a reasonable distance apart.