New Canaan police investigate vehicle thefts, break-ins

NEW CANAAN — Police are reminding residents to lock their cars and remove any valuables after recent incidents of vehicles being stolen or broken into.

Police said last Friday afternoon a resident reported a scooter had been stolen out of the New Canaan Parish parking lot. The resident told police the scooter’s tire had been locked and the vehicle was covered at the time of the theft. The keys were not taken during the theft, according to police.

On Saturday morning around 9:54 a.m., a BMW X5 was reported stolen from Hemlock Hill Road, according to police. The SUV was left unlocked and with a key fob inside.

Later that afternoon, BMW reported the car’s location in Bristol. When Bristol police attempted to stop the car, the driver “disobeyed the officer’s signals and took off,” New Canaan police said. The car was later found on Sunday morning in Meriden.

New Canaan police said items were also reported stolen from two vehicles on Saturday afternoon. Police said the two cars that were hit were parked adjacent to one another in the lower lot of Waveny Park near the pool.

Both cars were locked and were “forcibly entered,” according to police. Handbags were taken from both cars, and were left in plain sight in both instances, police said. Both contained credit cards, driver’s licenses and COVID-19 vaccination cards.

Police said residents should lock their vehicles and take the keys with them, and should not leave valuables in their car.

“Often, identity theft occurs when drivers’ licenses and credit cards are stolen,” police said.