The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Police: More than $73K worth of items stolen from car left with hospital valet
NEW HAVEN — Police are investigating the theft of more than $73,000 worth of jewels, cash, electronics and religious items from a vehicle left with a valet service at Yale New Haven Hospital, authorities said.
Police said officers were called to the hospital on Wednesday and spoke with the victim, who stated he was visiting from Dupont, Pa., and had left his red Cadillac with the valet service at 904 Howard Ave. a day earlier. He told officers he had left a significant amount of cash and valuables inside the vehicle, police said.
The victim told police that when he returned to his car, valuable items were missing, police spokesman Officer David Hartman said. The victim listed by police has the same name as the Orthodox priest who is chief executive officer of the Flight 93 Memorial Chapel in Pennsylvania.
Flight 93 crashed in Somerset County, Pa., on Sept. 11, 2001. It was one of four planes hijacked in the terrorist attacks on that day. The other planes were used against the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon.
Among the items missing, the victim told police, were the man’s house keys, bank checks with the account name “Flight 93 Memorial Church Complex Foundation Inc.”; a black HP computer valued at approximately $1,000; a white iPad Pro valued at $800; a pectoral cross made out of 21-carat gold and valued at approximately $14,000; a gold religious staff valued at $7,000; a 21-carat gold bishop’s ring with an amethyst stone valued at $12,000; a black PlayStation 4 with six games valued at $350; a chalice and communion paten set valued at $15,000; an 18-carat gold chain and cross valued at approximately $500; a bishop’s vestment valued at $6,500; a bishop’s crown valued at $4,500; a blessing cross valued at $300; a black Samsonite suitcase containing church documents valued at $350; and a black Nintendo Switch with one game valued at $360.
The victim also reported that he had locked the glove compartment prior to handing over the car. From there, he said, $9,000 and other items were taken.
The victim stated the thief did not take $30,000 worth of jewels that he had left in the trunk.
Chapel operators describe the Pennsylvania site as “a spiritual memorial and perpetual tribute in honor of the Heroes of Flight 93, and all others who perished Sept. 11, 2001.”
The vehicle had been moved from the lot prior to the police being called, Hartman said. Detectives from the department’s Bureau of Identification went over the vehicle and searched for fingerprint evidence.