Police arrest suspect in killing of Conn. UPS driver
WATERTOWN —State Police have charged a teen with murder following an assault on Route 8 Tuesday that left his coworker dead, the agency said Wednesday.
Elijah David Bertrand, 19, has been charged with murder in the death of 28-year-old Nathan D. Burk, of Waterbury.
State Police confirmed in a tweet around 2:30 p.m. that 19-year-old Bertrand had been arrested.
Plymouth police Capt. Ed Benecchi said Bertrand was apprehended by Plymouth police officers at a Valero gas station on Main Street.
He said police “received information” Bertrand was at that location. Officers approached Bertrand with their guns drawn and he complied with their demands as he was taken into custody. ,
Bertrand was unarmed at the time of his arrest, Benecchi said.
He said state police are currently at the gas station. It is unclear why Bertrand was there or how he arrived at that location.
Troopers from the Litchfield barracks at Troop L were dispatched to the area of Route 8 north near Exit 37 for an initial report of a crash involving a UPS shipping truck, according to Connecticut State Police.
Arriving troopers found that the driver of the truck had been assaulted. Detectives don’t know yet what prompted the assault, state police said.
Medics were dispatched to the scene and took the victim to an area hospital where he later died from his injuries, state police said, classifying the incident as a homicide.
“As an agency we would like to express our deepest condolences to the family of the victim,” state police said in a news release.
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of our colleague, and are cooperating with the investigation,” UPS said in a statement Wednesday morning, adding that any additional information about the incident would come from police.
Bertrand “is employed with UPS,” state police Trooper
Josue Dorelus said during a news conference around 11 a.m. He said the exact capacity of Bertrand’s employment is not yet clear.
Detectives are still working to figure out a possible motive, Dorelus said. He said preliminary information indicates that the two were working together at the time of the incident.
“We do know that the suspect and the victim are known to each other,” Dorelus said. “The extent of their relationship is unknown at this point.”
Bertrand is being held in lieu of $2 million bond and is scheduled to appear in state Superior Court in Waterbury on Thursday at 10 a.m.
Dorelus said detectives recovered a weapon from the scene, but declined to describe what it was.
He said an autopsy by the state’s chief medical examiner will determine the victim’s cause of death.
New England Teamsters planned to hold a vigil for Burk at the Waterbury UPS facility at 6 p.m., according to the post.
Anyone with information is asked to call 860-626-7900. All calls can remain confidential.