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Police ID Man Found Dead Below I-95 Overpass in Norwalk

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Police have identified a man spotted walking on Interstate 95 in Norwalk who was later found dead below the highway overpass Friday afternoon on West Avenue.

Isaul Euceda-Alcantrara, 24, of Norwalk, who is originally from Honduras, has been identified as the man found dead.

Norwalk police said dispatchers received multiple 911 calls around 3:20 p.m. Friday reporting the man's death.

Alcantrara has been living with family in Norwalk for several years, police said.

The office of the chief medical examiner did an autopsy on the man's body Aug. 22. The manner and cause of death will be determined pending further testing.

Detectives are working to establish the sequence of events in the last 24 hours of Alcantrara's life.

Investigators are searching for witnesses. Police hope to speak with anyone driving on I-95 southbound near exit 15 to West Avenue before 3:23 p.m. Friday who may have seen the man walking on the highway.

Police closed the northbound side of West Avenue for several hours during the investigation Friday, but the highway was reopened later that day.

Anyone with information is asked to call Det. Downer at 203-854-3182.

Check back for updates on this developing story. 



Photo Credit: Norwalk Police Department
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Driver Dies in Crash With Wrong-Way Driver

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A wrong-way driver struck and killed another driver on Route 8 in Watertown late Saturday night.

Multiple people called 911 to report someone driving the wrong way in a southbound lane on Route 8 near exit 36 in Watertown, state police said.

Near exit 27, the wrong-way driver, John R. Fretts, 43, of Morris, traveling north, hit another car head-on at about 9:57 p.m. The driver in that other car, Daniel Dziadik, of Torrington, died of fatal injuries.

An ambulance transported Fretts to Waterbury Hospital after complaining of back, leg and arm pain. His injuries were minor and it's unknown if he was wearing a seat belt.

Dziadik was wearing a seat belt. Both airbags deployed.

The crash remains under investigation.



Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto

Toy Hand Grenade Closes Terminal

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A toy hand grenade found in a piece of luggage at a security checkpoint Sunday afternoon prompted the closure of domestic Terminal 2 at San Francisco International Airport, authorities said.

Passengers were rerouted to boarding area C, which connects to the terminal via a walkway, while police cleared out the so-called suspicious package, airport officials tweeted.

"Originally there wasn't a line. They had just shut down the Terminal and told us to go to Terminal 1," Traveler Lynn Kristensen said. "Before you knew it, that line was all the way in LAX. So here we are in San Fran." 

Ticket counters reportedly remained open during the incident but people were moved from Terminal 2 to Terminal 1. Meanwhile, travelers at other terminals said that security lines were lengthy.

Just before 2 p.m., SFO spokesman Doug Yakel told NBC Bay Area that the item had been cleared and the security checkpoint was being reopened.

Further details were not immediately available.



Photo Credit: Stephanie Chuang
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North, South Korea Talks Enter Third Day

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Tense negotiations between North and South Korea continued through the night as Seoul demanded a formal apology for injuries to two of its soldiers this month, South Korean officials said Monday, NBC News reported.

The talks were described as tense after South Korea's Defense Ministry said it had detected "unusual" North Korean submarine activity even as the countries are trying to resolve a spat that brought the peninsula close to war last week.

Official sources said South Korean President Park Geun-hye told her staff during a meeting Monday morning that "it is most important to get North Korea's apology" for injuries to the two soldiers, who were wounded by landmines along the border early this month.



Photo Credit: AP
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Apple Recalls Batch of iPhone 6 Plus Smartphones

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Apple is recalling a batch of iPhone 6 Plus devices sold between the product's release date in September 2014 and January 2015, according to a statement on the company's website.

A component in the phone's camera is causing photos to appear blurry, the company said.

For this reason, Apple asks that anyone experiencing issues with blurry photos on a phone bought between this time, to contact contact an authorized service provider, its technical support team, or to make an appointment at a retail store.

Once Apple determines the phone reaches the proper requirements, they will replace the device's iSight will be replaced free of charge. Wireless carriers are not able to fix this issue. 

An iPhone 6 Plus with a cracked screen or other damage that will impair camera replacement must be fixed prior to service. 



Photo Credit: Getty Images

'Free the Nipple' on NH Beach

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If you were at Hampton Beach in New Hampshire Sunday, you might have seen more skin than usual.

"I am sharing it," proclaimed Shawntay Grasso. "Free the nipple!"

Some women on the beach went topless as a part of "Free the Nipple," a nationwide campaign to bring equality for men and women.

"I think there's a lot of shame attached to the bare body, and I just want to bring awareness that it doesn't have to be sexualized," said Grasso.

The movement is working towards eliminating the double standard of women covering their breasts. Standing in solidarity was one guy who didn't mind wearing a bikini top.

"I think I look ridiculous, so I think we should have equal rights and a woman should be able to take their top off and feel comfortable," said Nathan Surles.

And even though the women were on public property, they weren't arrested because baring your breast is legal on this beach.

"My two children right now are staring at a set of boobs, which is very inappropriate," said Jaclyn Gardner.

Not everyone was OK with the idea of these ladies letting it all hang out. Gardner says the movement is fine - just not near her two young boys.

"That's just the way society is. Women are supposed to cover themselves. They're supposed to stay that way," she said. "My boys aren't supposed to see that before a certain age."

Her oldest son didn't think it was a bad idea - just not at Hampton Beach.

"If I was on, like, spring break, with my friends, I'm all for it, but like, right now, I'm not diggin' it," said Demetrius Leesole.

Also on Sunday, men and women went topless in New York's Times Square - a legal act, but one that has drawn criticism from public officials.



Photo Credit: necn

ISIS Blows Up Roman-Era Temple in Palmyra, Syria

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ISIS militants on Sunday blew up the temple of Baal Shamin, one of the most important sites in Syria's ancient city of Palmyra, said Maamoun Abdul Karim, the country's antiquities chief.

The temple bombing would be the first time that the insurgents, who captured Palmyra in May, have damaged monumental Roman-era ruins.

A week ago, the militants beheaded Khaled Asaad, an 82-year-old scholar who worked for more than 50 years as head of antiquities in Palmyra, after detaining and interrogating him for more than a month.

Before ISIS captured the city, Syrian officials said they moved hundreds of ancient statues to safe locations out of concern that the militants would destroy them. In June, ISIS blew up two ancient shrines in Palmyra that weren't part of its Roman-era structures but that the militants regarded as pagan and sacrilegious. 



Photo Credit: AP

Train Attack Heroes Receive France's Legion d'Honneur

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The three Americans who helped thwart an attack by an AK-47-toting gunman on an Amsterdam-Paris train received France's highest honor on Monday.

French President Francois Hollande gave childhood buddies Alek Skarlatos, Spencer Stone and Anthony Sadler the Legion d'Honneur. Chris Norman, a British man who also rushed the assailant on the high-speed train on Friday, also recaived the award during a ceremony at the Élysée Palace, the president's official residence. 

Although they have been hailed as heroes, they have been quick to share the accolades.

"Everyone played their own part. No one is specifically to praise," said Stone, a 23-year-old first-class airman during a press conference at the U.S. ambassador's residence on Sunday.



Photo Credit: AP

French Train Gunman 'Dumbfounded' by Terrorist Claims: Lawyer

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The gunman who was disarmed by American passengers on a train in France Friday said he was surprised European authorities suspected him of being an Islamist militant, a lawyer who interviewed him after the attack said Sunday, NBC News reported.

"He is dumbfounded by the terrorist motives attributed to his action," said Sophie David, who described the man as her client.

David told the French TV news channel BFMTV the 26-year-old Moroccan looked weak and malnourished and said he had only meant to rob people.

The man, named by French and Spanish sources close to the case as Ayoub el Khazzani, told David he found the Kalashnikov he was carrying in a park near the Gare du Midi rail station in Brussels, where he was in the habit of sleeping.

Mother of Four Dies in Fire: Family

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A woman died in a fire in Derby Sunday morning at a six-unit residential building.

Family identified Nilda Ruiz, 48, as the woman killed in the blaze that broke out at about 7 a.m. They said she was a mother of four, including three boys and one girl. All of her children are grown up and she was a grandmother, family said.

“She was unique. She was a smart woman, very strong. She was always happy, always had something to smile about, always had a story to tell," Betsy Ruiz, Nilda's niece, said.

A structure fire broke out at 204 Derby Avenue in Derby. Firefighters found the woman, who the fire department and police haven't publicly identified, on the second floor. There is some confusion about the age of the woman and police are currently saying the woman is 47.

Everyone else living in the building got out safely. About 20 people live there.

Ruiz had lived in Derby for about six months after moving from Massachusetts to be closer to her mother and sister, family said. Ruiz was a throat cancer survivor and was very devout about her Christianity, according to family members.

“Very, very important. She talked about them all the time. All the time," Sharlyn Sanchez, Nilda's other neice said.

There were smoke detectors in the building that were still going off hours later.

Ansonia crews and state police also responded to assist.

The home was still taped off Sunday night as of 5:37 p.m. and firefighters were still investigating.

Firefighters are waiting for the medical examiner to arrive. The medical examiner will determine the woman's cause of death.

At least four families have lost their home in the fire. Firefighters have said little else about what started the fire.

That's frustrating to family members of the one mother who didn't make it out alive.

“I want to go in there myself and see what’s going on," Betsy Ruiz said.

Body Found in Car Outside Popular Restaurant

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A body was found inside a car in the Red Robin parking lot in West Hartford's Corbins Corner Sunday night.

Police responded to the restaurant around 6 p.m., according to authorities.

"Officers were dispatched to the Red Robin lot earlier today on a report of possibly a body in the car and a heavy odor coming out of the car," said Detective Sgt. Eric Rocheleau, of the West Hartford Police Department.

Police are treating the death as suspicious, he said.

Crime scene tape surrounded a red car in the parking lot at 1509 New Britain Avenue on Sunday.

Police said they could not identify the sex of the body in the car.

They are working with Farmington police, who have a missing person case related to the car, Rocheleau said.  The person has been missing for several weeks, he said.

Police were waiting for the medical examiner to arrive.  An autopsy was scheduled for Monday.



Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

17 Displaced After Electrical Fire

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Families were relocated after an electrical fire at a Jefferson Street residential building in Hartford on Saturday night.

Firefighters responded after receiving a call around 8:38 p.m., seeing heavy smoke and fire coming from the third floor of a three-story wood-framed residential building at 204 Jefferson Street. The fire extended to the rear of the building on the right-hand side.

Crews entered the building and attacked the fire agressively using hand lines, getting the fire under control in 30 minutes.

The Fire Prevention Division of the fire department determined the fire was accidental and the cause was electrical.

Hartford Fire Department's Special Services Division responded to help two families relocate. They worked with the American Red Cross to do so. About eight adults and nine children were displaced.

No one was injured. The building was unoccupied when firefighters arrived.

In addition to the fire on the top floor, the second floor sustained water damage.

Hartford firefighters and police responded and cleared the scene at about 10:41 p.m.



Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

Motorcyclist Killed in Suffield Crash

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A motorcyclist is dead after a crash in Suffield on Sunday night.

Police responded to 3851 Mountain Road around 7:15 p.m. on Sunday after hearing about the crash and said the driver had been traveling eastbound, went off the road and hit several guide wire poles.

Lifestar medical transport helicopter was called, but canceled. The motorcyclist succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced at the scene, according to police.

Police ask anyone with information about the crash or who w

Man Charged in Pellet Gun Attack on Mayor's Security Cop

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A 19-year-old man is facing felony charges after police allege he shot a member of Mayor de Blasio's police detail with a pellet or BB gun Sunday night outside Gracie Mansion.

Michael Verbitsky was charged with assault on a police officer with a deadly weapon, reckless endangerment, possession of a forged instrument, criminal mischief and weapons crimes in the shooting outside de Blasio's Yorkville home. 

Prosecutors say Verbitsky fired the pellet or BB gun from the 10th floor of a nearby building, hitting the female NYPD officer, then tried to escape police by going through a service elevator and then running away on the street.

The mayor was in Brooklyn at the time.

The security guard felt pain in her back and was taken to Lenox Hill Hospital with minor injuries, authorities said. She has since been released.

A woman, also 19, was also detained following the shooting, but she is not expected to be charged with any crimes. She was released Monday. 

At a court appearance Monday evening, Verbitsky's lawyer said the college student accidentally discharged the gun. Neither Verbitsky nor his parents, who posted Verbitsky's $10,000 bail, said anything to reporters as they left court.   

There have been two previous reports of pellet guns causing damage to windows in the area, police said.

Barb Hennessy, who lives near Gracie Mansion, told NBC 4 New York her own minivan windows were shot out by pellets or BBs last week as she and her family were driving near East End and 87th Street. She provided photos showing the shattered rear passenger windows. 

When she learned of the pellet shooting that hurt the NYPD officer, "automatically I put both things together, two random acts opposite Gracie Mansion. It's a little ironic in such a short span of time." 

"The scary thing about the whole thing is, that's Croswell Park, that is a playground there, that is a lot of children who use that park everyday," she said. 

Police say they're looking into reports of other pellet gun shootings in the area. 

De Blasio said Monday, "I have tremendous faith in the NYPD and I think my security and my family's security is being handled very well. I obviously was very concerned for the officer. I spoke to her and she's in fine shape so I guarantee the NYPD is going to take care of that situation." 

Verbitsky is next appeared to schedule in court Friday. 

CVS Employee Stole Medication from Pharmacy: Police

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Naugatuck police have arrested a CVS employee accused of stealing medication from the pharmacy.

Police responded to CVS just before 5 p.m. on Aug. 22 and charged Lyndsay Wasilus, 28, of Waterbury, with sixth-degree shoplifting and possession of a controlled substance.

She was released on a $5,000 non-surety bond and is due in Waterbury Superior Court on Sept. 2.

A Lyndsay Wasilus, of the same address, is listed on the state of Connecticut web site as having an active a pharmacy technician license.

It’s not clear if she has an attorney.



Photo Credit: Naugatuck Police

Woman Stole Several Razors from Big Y: Police

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A woman stole several disposable razors from a Big Y supermarket in Tolland on Friday afternoon, according to state police, and they are trying to identify.

Police responded to the Big Y on Route 195 in the town of Tolland to investigate a larceny and learned that a woman had stolen a large quantity of the razors at 4:15 p.m., according to a news release from state police.

After reviewing video surveillance footage and speaking with witnesses, police identified a possible suspect and said she got into a blue two-door sedan with a model year in the early 2000s. It had a sunroof and the license plate was not visible.

The woman appeared to be in her mid-20s or early 30s. She is around 5-feet-5, 130 pounds and has long brown hair. She was wearing a blue shirt and black shorts.

Anyone who recognizes the woman or has information about the theft should call Trooper Loftis at Connecticut State Police Troop C in Tolland at 860-896-3200.



Photo Credit: Connecticut State Police

U.S. Professor 'Rushed' Train Gunman, Was Shot

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A French-American professor who was hailed by President Francois Hollande for his "courage" was shot while trying to disarm a gunman wielding an AK-47 aboard a high-speed train, his wife said. 

Mark Moogalian, who is reportedly a 51-year-old academic originally from Midlothian, Virginia, spotted a suspicious passenger while traveling on the Amsterdam to Paris train Friday.

"My husband told me that he had seen someone strange because he had entered the toilets with his suitcase and it lasted a long time," Moogalian's wife Isabelle told Europe1 radio Monday. "A little while later the guy came out and that's when he saw that the guy was carrying a gun."

Moogalian was shot after he "rushed towards the gunman to remove ... the Kalashnikov." Isabelle credited Spencer Stone, a 23-year-old U.S. airman who had been traveling through Europe with two friends, for saving the life of the professor. The American trio and a British businessman stripped the suspect of an AK-47, pistol, a blade and a bag of ammunition.



Photo Credit: ReverbNation

5 Displaced After Hartford Electrical Fire

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A roof partially collapsed during a two-alarm electrical fire in Hartford late Sunday night and five people have been displaced.

Flames filled the dark sky in Hartford as a fire ripped through the second floor of the two-and-a-half story wooden multi-family home at 15 Carpenter Street just at about 11:58 p.m.

Neighbors saw fire come from the second floor of the building, so they knocked on the door. A civilian called 911.

Firefighters went into the building hose lines and established all occupants were out of the building. Crews were forced out of the building due to the heavy fire, high heat and low visibility, so they attacked the fire from the outside.

The fire department raised a second alarm to bring in more crews at nearly 12:30 a.m. on Monday.

Four residents were displaced and another resident was away when the fire broke out. No civilians were injured. Two firefighters sustained minor injuries and required treatment.

Firefighters have put out the fire, but the roof has been compromised.

The department's Special Services Division responded with the American Red Cross to help two families, including four adults and one child, relocate.

Firefighters stayed there until 4:32 a.m. Monday. Fire Prevention Division representatives said the fire was accidental and the cause was electrical.

Hartford fire officials caution residents to be careful when using electrical equipment and to follow manufacturer instructions.



Photo Credit: Marcone Gomes

Armed Robber On the Run After Standoff in Willimantic

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Police are looking for the man involved in an overnight standoff that prompted home evacuations in Willimantic and believe he has a weapon.

The incident started around 10:30 p.m. Sunday, when a man with a gun robbed two women in the area of Gem Drive. Neither woman was injured, but the man threatened them and grabbed cash from one of them before running, according to police.

Police said the robber is known to them, but they have not released his name or description.

Officers chased the suspect to his relatives' house at 45 Gem Drive in Willimantic and saw him run inside. Police set up a perimeter around the house, believing the man had barricaded himself inside.

Several homes in the area were evacuated and many nearby homes were issued a "shelter-in-place" order while the Willimantic SWAT team responded.

The suspect called police Sunday night. A series of additional phone calls followed and the suspect told authorities repeatedly he wasn't in the house at 45 Gem Drive and had passed through several towns, according to police.

"We assumed at that point that he may be in the house even though he was telling us he was at another geographical location," said Willimantic police spokesman Cpl. Stan Parizo Jr.

Willimantic police and SWAT remained outside the house until securing a search warrant early Monday morning. Police said the suspect wasn't inside when they searched the house, but they believed had been at one point, because investigators found a handgun that had been used during the robbery.

That standoff ended around 6 a.m. Monday. Police gave residents on Gem Drive and nearby streets the "all clear" to exit or return to their homes.

Police continue to search for the robber and said they don't believe the public is at risk in Willimantic. Authorities don't think the man is still in the immediate area.

"At this point, we do believe he’s armed," Parizo Jr. said. "I can tell you that he’s not in this general area. We did a very good search here, K-9s out there. He's definitely not here."

Police are interviewing the two women robbed and continue to look for their attacker. Authorities said they don't know of any relationship between the robber and victims.

Anyone with information is asked to call Willimantic police.



Photo Credit: NBCConnecticut.com

West Haven Police Arrest Suspected Car Thieves

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Police have arrested three men suspected of car thefts after responding to a report of someone tampering with a motor vehicle at 2:11 a.m. on Saturday.

When police responded to Lettney Place, they found a Honda Civic in the parking lot of 217 Union Avenue, so they went to investigate.

Something was amiss with the registration plate on the Honda and the VIN on the dashboard came back with no information, police said.

Then officers discovered that the VIN plate on the dashboard wasn’t fastened and that it was not the original VIN plate associated with the Honda. They soon discovered that the car had been stolen out of Bridgeport and several officers flooded the area.

Officer Schaefer found one man hiding behind a dumpster at 217 Union Avenue, while Officer Twohill found two more men on Martin Street, trying to leave the area in a Metro-Taxi, police said.

With help from the neighbors, police identified all three men and linked them to the stolen Honda. They also discovered that they had been trying to steal a second Honda that was parked at the end of Lettney Place, police said.

Hector Miranda, 25, David McKinney, 20, and Charles Portillo, 22, all of New Haven, were charged with larceny, conspiracy, interfering with police, trespassing and several motor vehicle charges.

They were all held on bond.
 



Photo Credit: West Haven Police
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