AUTO THEFT PREVENTION PROGRAM

Auto Theft Prevention Program

Consistent with national trends, Hartford is seeing a large number of Honda and Toyota thefts. In an attempt to prevent many of these thefts and partner with our community, the department will be launching an Auto Theft Prevention Program.

Registered owners of the most vulnerable vehicles have been identified through the tax roll and will be receiving a letter inviting them to participate in the program.  The letter will instruct the recipient to contact a police supervisor assigned to the area that they live to obtain “the Club” if they so desire.

The sergeants will be required to confirm residency, issue “the club”, and record the transaction in the Auto Theft Prevention Program records. 

Example of letters being sent out: 

Dear Grand List Owner:

Recently we have noticed a nationwide increase in automobile theft. When we reviewed our local statistics, we found that this is also consistent within our city. These same statistics offered by the 2011 National Insurance Crime Bureau Auto Theft Study indicates that certain vehicles have a greater appeal to thieves and are therefore more likely to be stolen.

The reason you are receiving this letter is that according to the City of Hartford Grand List, you are listed as the owner of a vehicle that is classified as a higher risk. As part of our proactive approach to reduce crime and auto theft, we are offering the opportunity for the owners of vehicles that are considered statistically higher risk to receive “The Club” for their vehicle free of charge. “The Club” is a device that locks over your steering wheel to immobilize it. Owners who use a steering wheel lock like “The Club” are four times less likely to be a victim of auto theft.

The Hartford Police Department and I hope that you take advantage of this great prevention program. Please contact your District Community Service Sergeant (see attached list) to receive “the Club” free of charge for the above listed vehicle. You will need to show proof of residency when you pick up “The Club”. There are a limited number of clubs for distribution so they will be given on a first come first serve basis.

If you have any questions, please feel free to discuss them with your District Community Service Sergeant.

Sincerely,

James C. Rovella

Chief of Police

Dealer Sentenced

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: US Department of Justice

May 13, 2014     

FORMER WETHERSFIELD RESIDENT SENTENCED

TO 46 MONTHS IN PRISON FOR DISTRIBUTING HEROIN

Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOSE NEGRON, also known as “Chino,” 29, formerly of Wethersfield, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 46 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for distributing heroin.

According to court documents and statements made in court, this matter stems from a joint law enforcement investigation headed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force and the Hartford Police Department into gang-related narcotics trafficking in Hartford’s South End.  The investigation specifically targeted a drug trafficking organization headed by Angel Rosa, aka “Little” and “Daddy,” who is a member of the Los Solidos street gang.  Rosa’s cousin, Angel Rosa, aka “Mo Betta” and “Fab,” supervised the daily operations of the organization, which distributed heroin and other narcotics in the Zion Street area.

The investigation, which included court-authorized wiretaps, further revealed that Iran Negron, aka “Face,” “Cara” and “Pete,” stored large quantities of the organization’s heroin at his Gilman Street residence, and also sold heroin and cocaine to his own customers.  JOSE NEGRON, who is Iran Negron’s nephew, supplied heroin to Iran Negron and Angel Rosa, aka Mo Betta.

As a result of the investigation, 21 individuals were charged with various federal offenses, and law enforcement officers seized narcotics, one firearm, approximately $230,000 in cash, eight vehicles and jewelry.

NEGRON was arrested on April 12, 2013.  On January 24, 2014, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, heroin.

NEGRON’s criminal history includes convictions for sale of narcotics, larceny and failures to appear.

NEGRON, who has been residing in Manchester while released on a $150,000 bond, was ordered to report to prison on June 10.

Angel Rosa, aka “Little” and “Daddy,” Angel Rosa, aka “Mo Betta” and “Fab,” and Iran Negron have pleaded guilty.  On April 29, 2014, “Mo Betta” was sentenced to 165 months of imprisonment.  “Little” and Iran Negron await sentencing.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Northern Connecticut Violent Crimes Task Force, which included members of the Connecticut State Police, Hartford Police Department, East Hartford Police Department, Connecticut Department of Correction and Connecticut National Guard.  The Connecticut State Police’s Emergency Services Unit, Hartford Police Department’s Emergency Response Team, Capital Region Emergency Response Team, Drug Enforcement Administration, Homeland Security Investigations and the New Britain, East Hartford, Wethersfield and Manchester Police Departments have provided valuable assistance to the investigation.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Brian Leaming and Patrick Caruso.

2014 Summer Initiative

HARTFORD POLICE DEPARTMENT

Operations Plan

 SUMMERTIME INITIATIVE 2014 

The Hartford Police Department in collaboration with all Uniformed and Investigative Divisions, in concert with other law enforcement agencies to include Federal, State and local police departments, will provide an enhanced police presence, in order to reduce violent crime and enhance Quality of Life programs during the Spring, Summer and Fall of 2014. 

The Hartford Police Department is committed to providing professional services to all citizens in the community as well as large corporations located in the City. We will continue to build on our successes in regards to the reduction of violent crime and quality of life initiatives. 

Police officers will be highly visible. This will be accomplished by ensuring that the maximum number of officers and detectives are working during hours of identified patterns of heightened criminal activity.

The Community Service Bureau Patrol Division (CSB): The Patrol Division is the backbone of the Hartford Police Department and will continue to play an important role in our efforts to reduce crime, fear and disorder in all of our neighborhoods. When officers are not investigating citizens’ calls for service, they will proactively patrol hot spot areas, conduct high visibility traffic enforcement and address conditions that negatively affect citizens’ quality of life.  

The Hartford Shooting Task Force (HSTF): The Hartford Shooting Task Force has had great success identifying individuals that have a propensity for violence and are likely to engage in violent criminal activity. The HSTF is fully staffed with local, state and federal law enforcement officers and will continue to investigate non-fatal gun assaults and violent gun offenders, leveraging every resource available to prevent further outbreaks of violence.   

Preventing Recidivism through Organized Supervision, Partnerships and Enhanced Relationships (PROSPER): This plan was first rolled out in February 2012 on a pilot basis with our partner, Adult Probation. The emphasis is on building relationships between an officer, the probationer, and the probationer’s family. The goals are to develop a relationship with the probationer and prevent recidivism. Time spent between a probationer and a police officer could result in second thoughts on behalf of the probationer to be involved in criminal activity or result in a referral to address an issue which could have been otherwise overlooked, such as a drug or anger issues.  

Presently, Community Service Officers (CSO), collaborate with representatives from Adult Probation to further their investigations and maintain open lines of communication with identified probationers. Adult Probation Officers and CSOs will work as a team to ensure the subject remains in compliance and is afforded an opportunity to be a productive and successful member of the community.  

Project Longevity: Project Longevity is a Community and Law Enforcement initiative to reduce serious violence. Project Longevity is modeled after successful efforts implemented in communities across the country. 

Project Longevity uses a unique combination of Community Involvement, Social Services, and Focused Policing to positively influence group dynamics. Project Longevity calls in group members across the community to receive a very important message from Law Enforcement and Community Representatives. Project Longevity's message is:

1. Group members are valued members of the community;

2. Violence will no longer be tolerated in our community and must stop;

3. We will provide support in securing a range of needed services to help you avoid engaging in criminal activity. 

Group members are presented with a range of services that will be offered to them if they want to transition from the gang lifestyle, such as:

1. Addiction Services

2. Medical/Mental Health Treatment

3. Educational Opportunities

4. Housing

5. Employment, and other services which are offered through the partnered social service providers.  

Lastly, a clear message is conveyed explaining that the next group to commit homicide, or the most violent group overall, will be met with the full force of the law and all of their group members will receive focused attention from members of local, state, and federal law enforcement who will work together to disrupt and dismantle such groups. 

District CSO’s, Conditions Teams and SRO’s- Quality of Life Enforcement: Our commitment is to take care of the small things in life that impact the larger issues. The Hartford Police Department will continue to work to improve the quality of life in the City’s seventeen neighborhoods through a comprehensive enforcement of laws and ordinances. Addressing the needs of the community is important to the Hartford Police Department. Theories of crime prevention address this area as fixing the “broken windows” or the little things go a long way in controlling the big issues. With increased collaboration with the community, the daily occurrences that degrade the quality of life will be identified and given immediate attention with a sense of urgency.  

Neighborhoods already have CSO’s and Conditions Teams embedded into their areas. Complimenting those assets will be the School Resource Officers (SRO), as their school session ends, and other additional uniformed police officers, subject to staffing availability. SRO’s will be redirected during the school summer vacation period to concentrate their efforts along with the District CSO’s and Conditions teams to address quality of life in the North, Central and South Districts. An emphasis will be placed on responsiveness to neighborhood concerns and accommodating a safe atmosphere in our city parks throughout the summer. The CSO’s, SRO’s and Conditions Teams will work closely with our Community Court partners. 

All Hartford Police Officers, especially the units just named will address complaints of theft of property, excessive noise, speeding, loitering, public drinking, illegal dumping, littering and other Quality of Life issues impacting the neighborhoods. A focus will be placed on City parks to provide a safe enjoyable family atmosphere. 

Additionally, CSO’s, Conditions Teams and SRO’s have access to calls for service data as it is recorded onto the CAD (Computer Aided Dispatch) to assist in expediting the response to quality of life calls and reducing response times. 

With the expedient delivery of professional service that targets those issues which inhibit positive neighborhood growth, the Hartford Police Department will greatly improve the quality of life for our citizens and make it a spring and summer to enjoy.

Excessive noise, littering, vice and narcotics offenses, speeding, loitering, public drinking and other order maintenance issues will be addressed with a focus on identifying the root causes of the problem, in order to develop lasting solutions. Community Service Officers, Conditions Units, and School Resource Officers will focus on these issues and address them as needed. 

During the summer every District will provide an SRO or a CSO to address quality of life issues at city parks on Sundays in order to provide a safe and enjoyable family atmosphere for everyone’s enjoyment. 

In accordance with the Mayor’s newly launched anti-litter campaign, CleanHartford: Anti-Litter Campaign, Officers will be closely monitoring individuals, property owners and businesses for litter violations. Violators will be ticketed and referred to Community Court. Businesses and property owners will receive a citation and a fine for non-compliance, individuals will be required to participate in community service within 30 days of their violations.  

CSOs will inform community groups of the Anti-litter Campaign. 

All-Terrain Vehicles and Dirt Bikes have been a continual problem with the emergence of the warmer weather. We will initiate a multi-pronged response to address the issue:

 We will conduct roll call training and disseminate handouts listing appropriate charges and reinforcing "no pursuits." Officers will be directed to target these types of vehicles when parked. Gas stations and markets are often locations where these vehicles can be found parked, the majority of the time no one will claim ownership making seizing/towing easy. Officers will be directed to take all the appropriate enforcement action, particularly when towing vehicles that are found to be unregistered and no paperwork is provided relative to ownership.

1. Tow companies will be contacted and advised not to release these vehicles unless they are provided with and record all the required documentation for release.  

2. Request for information where these vehicles are being stored will be made at all community meetings.

3. We will request that DPW assist by reporting addresses of quads and similar vehicles which are stored/parked.

    

The Hartford Police Department and Hartford 2000 will work together with the Mayor’s Office, Metro Hartford Alliance, and other stakeholders to launch a Community Quality of Life Initiative, rollout the Neighborhood Standards, and conduct a series of community dialogues on quality of life in Hartford.   

The Neighborhood Standards were developed by Hartford 2000 as a tool to help improve the quality of life throughout the City.   The Standards have been adopted by the Hartford City Council and will be distributed widely.  While the Standards will always be evolving, they are useful in their present form. 

The purpose of the community dialogues will be to improve and maximize the usefulness of the Neighborhood Standards and to provide an opportunity for increasing understanding and building relationships among various community stakeholders including residents, HPD, government, business, and others.  Community dialogues differ from more typical community meetings in that they stress the involvement of a broad diversity of participants, include trained facilitators, and provide a structure that leads to an action plan. 

Traffic Division-High Visibility Traffic Enforcement: The Hartford Police Department will employ comprehensive traffic enforcement to facilitate voluntary compliance with traffic laws, increase police visibility and decrease on-going criminal activity. The department will deploy resources on an Intelligence-Based Traffic Enforcement Concept to encourage compliance and deter crime. The Traffic Division will also direct their attention to quality of life issues such as motor vehicle/ motorcycle racing and noise issues. 

The Traffic Division will continue to employ their grant-sponsored enforcement and checkpoint programs making the streets and roads safer for drivers, bikers and the pedestrian public.  

The Traffic Division will provide high police visibility with a unified approach to enforce motor vehicle laws, deter violence and exhibit presence in the communities.  

Faith Based Initiative: The Hartford Police Department in conjunction with City leaders will continue to foster community relations through members of the faith based community. The Hartford Police Department will encourage churches to take an active role in neighborhoods surrounding their churches and ensure that information pertaining to crime is exchanged in a proactive approach to reduce violent crime while enhancing ties to community.   

Business District Community Service Officer (BDCSO): In 2013, the Hartford Police Department has implemented the newly created positions, BDCSO’s. Their responsibilities include establishing relationships with business owners, patrons, residents and stakeholders in the Business District. They will address issues and concerns affiliated with Business District areas and adjust their schedules to meet the needs of the Business District, ensuring there is a safe, consumer friendly and enjoyable atmosphere in their assigned areas.     

Auxiliary Services-Private Job Vigilance: With the increase in the number of construction project related police private duty jobs this year, the Police Department will have the ability to provide a substantial appearance of police omnipresence throughout the city. Officers will be highly visible and all are equipped with a portable police radio. Information relating to crimes, wanted persons/vehicles and crime locations will be provided to Private Duty Job Officers just like regular duty officers. The Private Duty Job office and Inspections Unit of the Hartford Police Department will ensure compliance with all HPD Policy and Procedures.  

Gun Buy Back Program: The Hartford Police Department in conjunction with Hartford Hospital, Saint Francis Hospital, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, the Community Renewal Team and other community partners will be conducting a Gun Buy Back Program. The program is offered to give individuals an opportunity to safely dispose of a firearm that they no longer want, need or have no use for, without giving it away or illegally selling it. By taking these firearms the Hartford Police Department is preventing them falling into the wrong hands landing on City streets to be used in violent criminal activity. 

The Hartford Police Department will take custody of all firearms turned in to the program and members of Hartford Hospital, Saint Francis Hospital, and Connecticut Children’s Medical Center will provide gift cards in exchange for the firearms. This program will be highly publicized, particularly by the District Community Service Officers, targeting Hartford residents, through the Faith Based Initiative. The Gun Buy Back Program will be conducted on dates to be determined throughout the summer. 

Intelligent Deployment of Resources in Hot Spot Areas where Hot People Congregate: Each district commander will designate enforcement areas in their district where known violent people, “Hot People” congregate and commit violent offenses. These will be the geographical areas in the district that contribute to or are most likely to have gun violence and other violent offenses. 

The goal is to suppress the opportunity for gun violence to occur by focusing efforts at locations where victims and Hot People are expected to gather, and to collect information on persons who carry guns for crime purposes and those who sell guns. 

The enforcement areas and violent targets will be specifically defined, and may include, for example, specific 24-hour convenience stores, gas stations, and bodegas, specific bars/clubs, or specific intersections, street corners or blocks. 

District commanders will team with non-HPD assets and agencies (examples such as liquor commission, tobacco enforcement, L&I, health) and HPD entities (examples such as VIN, Pawn Shop Unit, Traffic Division traffic safety checkpoints and DUI enforcement, Mounted Unit, etc.) to conduct coordinated enforcement efforts in the enforcement areas. A debriefing component must be included to properly collect and utilize information on shooters and illegal gun carriers. Detectives from the Shooting Task Force, MCD and/or District Detectives should be readily available and tasked with debriefing even those arrested for minor crimes at or near the enforcement areas.

District Detectives: Detectives assigned to the districts will aggressively debrief individuals arrested by Conditions Officers, Community Service Officers and Patrol Officers in an effort to obtain information pertaining to guns and violent crime. All information obtained will be forwarded to the Major Crime Division and the Vice, Intelligence and Narcotics Unit.  

Hartford Police Activities League (PAL): The Hartford Police Activities League (PAL) is a 501c-3 non-profit unit with the Hartford Police Department. The PAL program has a newly formed Board of Directors who are highly energetic and dedicated to the city’s youth. Pal board members, volunteers and Hartford Officers are committed to improving the lives of inner city youth through recreational activities and educational programs that offer an alternative to violence, gang membership, truancy and substance abuse. PAL promotes the positive relationships between the inner city youth and the members of the Hartford Police Department by providing positive alternatives to life’s choices and mentoring. Our programs incorporate well-versed officers that are knowledgeable and committed to being positive role models and other reputable volunteers. The PAL program teaches participants the importance of integrity, respect, discipline, self-esteem, leadership, teamwork and other valuable life skills that breed success. 

High Visibility Operations: Several days throughout the summer months, the Hartford Police Department will conduct High Visibility/Saturation Operations which will consist of traffic checkpoints, quality of life enforcement, vice enforcement, warrant service and detectives performing their regular assignments in identifiable police regalia. In addition our law enforcement partners from surrounding municipalities, state and federal agencies will assist by being highly visible in their attire that identifies them as law enforcement officers. 

CT-HTFD-IRAPP(Connecticut Hartford Interoperable Response And Preparedness Platform): The Hartford Police Department recently implemented the CT-HTFD-IRAPP with the use of Mutualink, which is a real-time communication system that allows communication between internal and external agencies with dissimilar radio/communication systems. The System will give the Hartford Police Department access to real time video feeds from different sources throughout the city of Hartford. CT-HTFD-IRAPP will allow private agencies, corporations, educational institutions and entities to support the Hartford Police Department with its mission of creating a safe environment during large scale events such as concerts, festival, parades, etc. 

CT-HTFD-IRAPP will work in conjunction with Shots Spotter, where accessible, in an attempt to gather real time information on suspects, motor vehicles, and identifying criminal activity. The system will be activated to conduct operations ranging from shooting incidents to motor vehicle enforcement.  

Special Operations Group (SOG): The Special Operations Group was created to identify and address patterns of crime such as shooting, serious assaults, robberies, burglaries, auto thefts etc. The SOG will utilize intelligence, surveillance techniques, undercover officers, bait cars, sting and reverse sting operations and confidential informants to identify, track and ultimately apprehend suspects of crimes and patterns Identified by area and/or division commanders. A supervisor will utilize individuals from various Divisions on an as needed basis. The individuals will be chosen based on special capabilities need for that particular operation.   

Mounted Patrol: The Hartford Police Mounted Patrol has many advantages when conducting police operations. The Officers on horseback have an elevated position and a bird’s eye view when responding to crowd control situations, conducting directed patrols and conducting targeted enforcement. The horses can get in and out of areas that motor vehicles cannot. They provide a highly visible police presence while forging community relationships. 

The Mounted Patrol will continue providing a police presence during times of large influx into the Downtown Area. The Mounted Patrol will assist with large scale events at the XL Center, the Xfinity Theatre and River Front Festivals, Concerts and activities. They will be deployed into Hot Spot areas as determined by district and/area commanders while supporting SRO’s and CSO’s at city parks during times of high occupancy.

Crime reduction, safer communities and enhanced quality of life will be the end product of a comprehensive approach to intelligence-led policing by the Hartford Police Department and our Law Enforcement and Community Partners. The listed divisions working in concert with one another will provide a strong framework for the reduction of violent crime and enhancement of the community.