State: Stratford man convicted of break-ins owes victims $58,000
The defendant was convicted of burglaries in Milford, Monroe, Naugatuck, Trumbull, Orange, Westport, Shelton, Stratford, Fairfield and Seymour
MILFORD — A serial burglar sent to prison for six years nearly a decade ago could be headed back to jail for not paying restitution to his victims.
Douglas Fast, 57, of Stratford, was convicted in 32 separate cases following his arrest after a break-in in Seymour and high speed chase on Route 8 in December 2011.
Fast pleaded guilty to committing burglaries in a host of municipalities throughout the region: Milford, Monroe, Naugatuck, Trumbull, Orange, Westport,
Shelton, Stratford, Fairfield, and Seymour.
At the time, his lawyer said he perpetrated the break-ins to finance a heroin addiction.
In November 2012, Judge Frank Iannotti sentenced Fast to a 15-year prison term to be suspended after he served six years behind bars, to be followed by five years of probation.
The terms of the sentence were part of a plea deal wrapping up cases from multiple jurisdictions.
While on probation, the judge ordered Fast to get a job and pay restitution to the burglary victims “commensurate with his ability to pay.”
Fast was released from prison in April 2017. Probation officials determined he owed $60,545 in restitution to 12 victims.
But as of January, he had only paid $1,900, according to a probation violation warrant he was served Jan. 31.
At a court appearance Tuesday, Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Howard Stein said he was in the process of obtaining Fast’s tax returns for the time he was on probation, anticipating Fast will claim that he lacked the ability to pay.
“I believe his tax filings are going to show differently,” the prosecutor said.
Fast’s lawyer, Senior Assistant Public Defender Kenneth Bunker, said his office would look into the matter as well.
“We’ll do our own investigation,” he said.
Fast is scheduled to return to court May 13. He remains free on a promise to appear.