Ridgefield homeowner in 2017 shooting gets probation
DANBURY — A Ridgefield homeowner who admitted to shooting at a group of teens during a botched attempt to steal his luxury SUV four years ago will face no time behind bars as part of his sentencing earlier this week.
Mauro Tropeano was given a suspended sentence of 364 days on Monday, the Danbury Superior Court clerk’s office said. Tropeano pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor count of third-degree assault in March of last year for the shooting.
He also received a suspended sentence of 364 days on each of two counts possession of a controlled substance, Eugene Riccio, his criminal defense attorney said Tuesday. Ridgefield police claimed a search of Tropeano’s Hulda Lane home following the shooting turned up large numbers of pills, including steroids and unmarked pills; seven pounds of cannabis and $26,000 stuffed into a bucket.
He also faces three years of probation.
“This case it should be recalled stems from Mr. Tropeano’s efforts by himself at his own home to protect his life and property in the middle of the night from a gang of criminals,” Riccio said Tuesday.
The sentence in the shooting was part of a plea agreement Tropeano made last year.
Authorities had originally charged Tropeano with second-degree assault and illegal discharge of a firearm months after the shooting on the night of June 5, 2017. Authorities said the girl, a Waterbury resident, and a group of friends had traveled to Ridgefield in a stolen Kia that night to break into and steal cars.
The girl later told police the group had attempted to take the Range Rover parked in Tropeano’s driveway, when the homeowner came out. The group crashed the Range Rover into a bush before fleeing. As they were driving away in the Kia, the girl told police Tropeano shot at them and a bullet passed through the rear of the car and into her back.
Tropeano at first denied having shot at the group when speaking to investigators, but later admitted through his lawyer that he had fired his Glock handgun at them “in defense of my person.”
The family of the girl who was shot during the encounter later sued Tropeano in state court, claiming he used “excessive force,” according to court filings. The suit was later dismissed, court records show.