Police are looking for the man linked to a suspicious incident that happened at a Baptist church in New London last week. 

During the Friday service at Trinity Missionary Baptist Church on Blackhall Street, a man wearing a brown sweater walked into the church and remained in the rear, holding a blue coat, New London police said.

When the man was approached by two church members, he stated, "I see you brought back-up," before he left the church on foot up Blackhall Street towards William Street, according to police.

While no weapon was brandished, it was reported that a noticeable "bulge" was observed in the area of the man's back belt line, police said. 

The man is described as being between the ages of 55 and 60, 6 feet tall and up to 160 pounds with short gray hair and a thin mustache.

Police ask that residents report any suspicious activity to the New London Police Department.

Anyone with information regarding this incident or the unknown male in question is encouraged to contact the New London Police Department's Communications Center at (860) 447-5269 ext. 0 or anonymous information can be submitted via the New London Tips 411 system by texting NLPDTip plus the information to Tip411 (847411).

Following a series of tweets President Trump sent over the weekend in response to the Parkland, Florida, shooting and the indictment of 13 Russian nationals who tried to sow discord in the 2016 U.S. election, the White House agreed that Russia tried to meddle with the 2016 election but maintained that there was no collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign.

During the Public Safety Medal of Valor award ceremony, President Trump said that he has been in discussions with Attorney General Jeff Sessions on a proposal to ban “bump stocks,” devices that increase the firing rate of semi-automatic guns to match the firing rate of machine guns.

A BB gun was found in a high school student's backpack in Stratford on Tuesday. 

Police said the school resource officer at Bunnell High School was anonymously tipped about a student with a weapon on school property. 

A BB gun was found in the student's backpack and they cooperated with the resource officer the entire investigation, Stratford police said. 

There were no threats to anyone at the school, police said. 

The student was charged with breach of peace and having a weapon on school grounds. 

A pedestrian was struck by a vehicle in West Haven on Tuesday, police said.

Police officers were called to the scene on Elm Street at Second Avenue around 5:50 p.m. 

Drivers are asked to avoid the area. 

No other details were immediately available. 

NBC Connecticut Meteorologists are forecasting record warmth for Wednesday. 

We're forecasting inland areas to reach the 70s while the shoreline communities can expect temperatures in the 60s. Areas along coastal southeastern Connecticut will be much cooler only rising into the middle to upper 50s.

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We will absolutely obliterate the high temperature record for the Hartford area. Weather records in the Hartford area are recorded at Bradley International Airport and go back to 1905. The current record for Wednesday is 63 degrees set back in 1930. We're forecasting a high temperatures of 72 degrees which would break the record by 9 degrees.

It's also quite unusual to experience temperatures in the 70s in the month of February. 

In fact it has only occurred a total of five times. Tomorrow will make it the sixth occurrence in the past 113 years. Three out of the six times will have occurred within the last 3 years. 

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A 10-year-old who was hiking as part of a birthday party was struck by a falling tree in Granby, police said. 

The girl was hiking with four other children and two adults at McLean Game Refuge on Tuesday afternoon. 

A tree fell onto the path as the girl pass through beneath and struck her, police said.

Emergency crews responded to the area at 1:57 p.m. and the girl was transported by LifeStar to Hartford Hospital with serious injuries.

No other details were immediately available. 

Two people were found dead inside an Essex home on Tuesday and police said they are investigating the untimely deaths. 

Connecticut State Police said they responded to the home on Prospect Street around 1:30 p.m. to conduct a well-being check. 

Responding troopers found two people dead inside the home. 

There is no threat to the public, according to police.

Detectives from Central District Major Crime have assumed the investigation.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner will conduct a post-mortem examination in order to determine the cause and manner of deaths.

The names of the deceased are being withheld.

This incident remains under investigation.

Exactly five months after Hurricane Maria, new figures show suicide rates in Puerto Rico reached a new high after years of steady drops.

At least 103 people have died by suicide in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, which ravaged Puerto Rico on Sept. 20. That’s 14 more people than in the same period the year before. Last year ended with a 29 percent increase in suicide cases reported to Puerto Rico’s Department of Health compared to the previous year.

Although the island’s Department of Health has not done a comprehensive study to correlate the spike in suicide rates with Hurricane Maria, experts say that natural disasters have an impact on people’s mental health. A spike in suicidal ideation, which includes thoughts of suicide, shows a marked increase.

"Previous literature shows, and this is in any part of the world, that during the first six months after a hurricane there’s an increase in mental health symptoms," said Glorisa Canino, director of the Behavioral Sciences Research Institute at the University of Puerto Rico.

SUICIDE PREVENTION HELP: The National Suicide Prevention Hotline (1-800-273-8255) is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Following the massacre of 17 students and teachers at a Florida high school last week, a Colorado father of four wrote an open letter Tuesday claiming that the only thing that stopped him from carrying out his own bloodbath 30 years ago was his inability to get a gun.

“I was almost a school shooter,” Aaron Stark wrote in a letter shared with NBC affiliate KUSA. “I am not a school shooter because I didn't have access to guns. Guns don't kill people, people kill people. But people with guns kill lots of people.”

Stark wrote that he felt like an outcast in 1996, when he attended Denver's North High School, where he was allegedly bullied and had a very chaotic childhood. “I was going to try and kill a lot of people and then kill myself,” he said during an emotional interview. “It was not directed at the people, it was directed at myself.”

Stark said later on MSNBC Tuesday afternoon that “we need to have a hard look at the effect that guns have” and said in the aftermath of the shooting people needed to be looking at both mental health and gun reform. He also called for people to show more compassion to others.

Computer hackers stole more social security numbers than credit card numbers for the first time ever.

Social security numbers were compromised in 35 percent of security breaches during 2017, while credit card numbers were compromised in 30 percent of breaches, Javelin Research & Strategy reported in its annual fraud study. 

Each year during tax season, the IRS encourages taxpayers to file early to reduce the risk of tax identity theft.

Tax identity theft is when someone uses another person's personally identifiable information to file a tax return in their name.

"The IRS will tell you that probably something like 14 percent of all refunds are claimed inappropriately," the commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Revenue Services, Kevin Sullivan, said.

Sullivan said each year, his office is stopping more and more refund fraud.

"It’s around $20 to $30 million that doesn’t get taken because of the steps that we have taken to make sure that it’s not stolen," he said.

The IRS also reported a significant drop in fraudulent filing for the second year in a row. The decline is largely attributed to efforts of the Security Summit, a collaborative effort among the IRS, state tax agencies and industry partners, including tax preparation and software firms.

In Connecticut, safeguards include extra steps to verify your identity and even delaying your tax refund if your account is flagged.

"We actually hold up refunds longer than we used to because the more you can slow it down, the more you have a window of opportunity to stop it from being stolen," Sullivan said.

Sullivan said first-time taxpayers in Connecticut cannot opt for direct deposit. Instead, they will be sent a paper check. The process takes a little longer and DRS can stop a payment in cases of suspected fraud.

Sullivan also said DRS will not allow direct deposits to certain accounts, banks or financial institutions with a suspect record.

"We want to make sure people do get their money. But we want to make sure they get the money that they’re due and that somebody else doesn’t," he said.

For more information on preventing tax-related identity theft, visit the Identity Theft Resource Center.

Warm weather during the day and close to freezing temperatures at night are creating potholes on roads across the state, including the roads in Norwich.

Norwich Public Works said the key is to be proactive by scanning the city and filling the holes before they put a hole in someone’s tire.

Potholes appear to be popping up a bit earlier this year, Public Works Director Ryan Thompson said.

"You always see the potholes develop around areas where there’s failed pavement," Thompson said.

The freezing and thawing cycle, in addition to plows and traffic, form potholes.

A new $5 million infrastructure bond will be put toward repaving the worst of the city’s 163 miles of roads in the spring, according to Thompson.

The challenge with fixing potholes this time of year is that asphalt plants aren’t open until about April. Norwich does have hot mix asphalt for smaller projects, but Thompson said they prefer the weather stay about 40 for a while.

"We don’t know what the winter’s still yet to do and we don’t want to put something in that might pop right back out," Thompson said.

Norwich's purchasing agent Bill Hathaway said in years past the city has had a small number of claims from residents who had their car damaged by potholes on city roads. He said if the city does not have advanced notification of the pothole, it’s not liable.

Drivers have definitely seen them and try to avoid them.

"My car is getting old so I hope I don’t hit no potholes," Patricia Hansen, of Norwich, said. "I don’t think I could afford to pay for the damage."

Crews at Town Fair Tire in Norwich know all about that.

"It can do anything from blowing out the tire completely to bending the wheel to the point where you’ll need a new wheel on the car, to completely throwing off the alignment," Town Fair Tire Manager Jason Homand said.

In January roughly more than half of the company's 200 flat tire repairs have been pothole-related, according to Homand.

The issue of addressing sexual assault, harassment and intimidation in the workplace is a bipartisan issue in the Connecticut General Assembly.

Democrat and Republican leaders and their staffs in the House and Senate have met on the topic.

On Tuesday, it was Democrats rolling out their priorities when it comes to dealing with the issue.

Sen. Martin Looney, the leader of the State Senate said the package of legislation, "includes the largest overhaul of sexual harassment and sexual assault law in modern Connecticut history."

The proposals are wide-ranging and include mandating workplace training for all employers in Connecticut as to what constitutes assault or harassment, reforming and making easier the complaint process through the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, increasing fines for offenders, and ending the practice of employers striking settlements and keeping those details private.

Supporters of the legislation said it’s those settlements that could lead to inappropriate behavior continuing in a workplace.

"Banning secret settlements can be life-changing whether it’s hiding the truth about hazardous products or in this case sexual harassment and abuse," Sen. Terri Gerratana said.

Republicans in the State Capitol say they feel the issue has now been even more politicized since Democrats decided to roll out their own bills, even though the issue has been discussed privately among leaders as being an issue they felt they could move forward on in a collaborative way.

Rep. Themis Klarides, the top Republican in the House, said, "I am open, and all four caucuses are open to these conversations and that’s why we wanted to have public hearings, but again, this is one of those issues that should not be partisan and they are trying to make this partisan and that is something people in this state should not tolerate."

To date, Republicans in the Senate have yet to file a bill pertaining to sexual harassment or assault, while Democrats have filed more than a dozen.

Rep. Liz Linehan, a Democrat from Cheshire, feels a level of vindication to see such a public push to curb workplace harassment, assault, and intimidation.

More than twenty years ago she says her broadcasting career was derailed following multiple incidents.

"I was sexually assaulted in the workplace, and subsequently sexually harassed and I lost my job because of it and was blacklisted from my given industry," Linehan said.

She added that she hopes some kind of legislation passes, even if it’s not everything Democrats are looking for.

“I’m afraid that if we went too far that a bill wouldn’t pass,” Linehan said. “We need to make sure that our first step is protecting the victims.”

The wake of the Florida shooting has sparked a sense of community for people wanting to celebrate the lives lost.

In the Parkland school shooting, the heroism included teacher and cross country coach, Scott Beigel. Students said Beigel unlocked his door so they could run in, away from the gunfire and that’s when he was fatally shot.

Six days later in West Hartford, runners ran around a track in Beigel’s name.

Bloomfield teacher Mary Kay Rendock, who organized a running event on behalf of Beigel’s friend and West Hartford native, Sarah Williams.

"Sarah’s dear friend Scott was a hero last week and we’re here to celebrate that," Rendock said. 

Williams knew Beigel for 25 years since the two went to camp together.

"About three in the morning, we got an email from our directors, letting us know that he had been fatally shot protecting his students and was no longer with us," Williams said.

Rendock’s attire of choice was a five-year-old shirt that says, Love Wins. She wore it Tuesday while chanting, “Never again.”

“When I get upset and stressed about something and act like this, the only thing that makes me feel better at all is to get involved,” said Rendock.

So she ran with it.

In two days, she organized the run in Beigel’s honor, and in conjunction with a similar event in Florida.

Roughly 50 people showed up to put in at least one lap in Beigel’s name.

“We did a 5k, which is the cross country race in high school,” said Ellington’s Jeff Bernabe. “We wanted to give back to the coach and use that symbolic gesture as well.”

A small symbolic gesture in Connecticut, remembering one much bigger in Parkland.

“You protect those that you love and you protect those that you’re in charge of,” said Williams. “It didn’t surprise me that would be his instinct, to protect.”

Getting around Connecticut without a car may soon become more difficult and more expensive if a proposal from the Department of Transportation (DOT) to significantly alter the state’s mass transit systems becomes a reality.

The proposal that would raise fares on both rail and bus lines in the state, in addition to reducing service at times, is the result of a shortfall in the state’s Special Transportation Fund.

Transit riders in New Haven learned about the proposal during a public hearing Tuesday. The hearing was one of a series of such events happening around the state to explain the proposed changes to residents who might be impacted.

Among the changes that would begin on July 1, 2018, the DOT is proposing raising bus fares by 14.3 percent and rail fares by 10 percent. The agency has also proposed making downtown shuttles in New Haven and Hartford that are now free one dollar in addition to eliminating off-peak weekend and weekday service on multiple rail lines.

A number of residents, including two New Haven alders, who spoke at the hearing expressed that the proposed changes would have significant negative impacts on residents’ ability to live their lives in the city.

Department of Transportation Commissioner James P. Redeker said the proposals were crafted out of necessity to keep the department and transit in the state afloat in the midst of a difficult economic climate.

“These are not impacts that DOT is proposing because we want to. It’s a last resort to balance a transportation fund to keep our business running,” Redeker said.

The commissioner said the current proposals could potentially be avoided or their impact reduced with additional funding from state lawmakers.

“These will happen at some level. Something very much like this to achieve the same savings has to happen unless revenues come via the legislature this session," Redeker said.

He encouraged concerned residents to voice their concerns at upcoming public forums on the proposed transit changes.

For the list of upcoming public hearings or to leave a comment for the DOT, click here.

To see the full DOT presentation, click here.

An aide to a Republican Florida politician was fired after suggesting two Parkland school shooting survivors who are the subject of conspiracy theories are "crisis actors."

In an email, Benjamin A. Kelly, district secretary for Florida State Rep. Shawn Harrison who represents Hillsborough County, said that two students – David Hogg and Emma Gonzalez "are not students here but actors that travel to various crisis when they happen."

Hogg and Gonzalez have been vocal on social media and on television about their efforts to prevent further mass shootings.

However, the grief they face is being corrupted online as the false conspiracy theories spread.

Hogg is targeted in the theories. He is a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who works at the school's TV station.

Following the shooting in which 17 people, mostly his peers, died, he has been outspoken about enacting gun reform to prevent similar tragedies as part of the #NeverAgain movement.

Specifically, Hogg has directed his outrage at the NRA and politicians who have received donations from the gun-rights group.

In the unfounded conspiracy theories, individuals and online groups have used images of Hogg to portray him as a "crisis actor" – definition of which being an actor that travels from crisis to crisis to propagate a specific ideology usually for a political goal.

One post uses as its evidence an interview Hogg conducted with CBS Los Angeles related to a story about a confrontation between a lifeguard and a body surfer – an altercation Hogg caught on camera.

The conspiracy theory further gained traction among fringe parts of the internet after it was mixed with fact: Hogg's father is a retired FBI agent.

The theory seemingly spread to upper levels in state legislature.

Following Kelly's email, Harrison said his aide was "terminated from his position."

"I am appalled at and strongly denounce his comments about the Parkland students. I am again sorry for any pain this has caused the grieving families of this tragedy," Harrison wrote on Twitter.

Harrison said that he does "not share [Kelly's] opinion and he did so without my knowledge."

Kelly on Twitter said he "made a mistake."

"I meant no disrespect to the students or parents of Parkland," he wrote on Twitter before deleting his account.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio did not mince words in his condemnation of the conspiracy theories.

"Claiming some of the students on tv after #Parkland are actors is the work of a disgusting group of idiots with no sense of decency," Rubio wrote on Twitter.

Old Saybrook police are stepping up patrols at schools in town after the arrest of a 17-year-old student.

Police did not release specific details, but said students and parents reported concerns about the teen, who is a high school student, on Friday. After investigation, the teen was arrested and charged with breach of peace.

Authorities did not give details on what specific behavior or comments prompted the reports, but confirmed Old Saybrook public school officials were involved in the investigation.

The suspect will not be allowed on any Old Saybrook school property until determined safe by a court and school officials. Police said there was never any credible threat against any school in Old Saybrook.

There may be a police presence at school campuses in town throughout the week, “for no other reason than to allow our students and staff to know we are there to keep them safe,” police said.

Police encouraged residents to always report suspicious behavior to law enforcement.

Town officials in Southington have scheduled a public hearing to consider a proposal for a medical marijuana dispensary on Queen Street. 

One of the items on the agenda for the Planning and Zoning Commission Tuesday night was a proposal for a special permit application for a medical marijuana dispensary at 995 Queen St. 

A public hearing has been scheduled for March 6.

Lindsey Vonn races what's likely her last Olympic downhill, American cross-country skiers break a 42-year medal drought and Liechtenstein's sports royalty shines. Here are the Pyeongchang Games by the numbers: 

33 With a bronze finish in the women’s downhill, Lindsey Vonn became the oldest female medalist in Alpine skiing in the Winter Games at age 33. She takes the record from Austria’s Michaela Dorfmeister, who was just shy of her 33rd birthday when she won the downhill and the super-G at the 2006 Turin Olympics. At the Pyeongchang Games, Vonn's friend and rival Sofia Goggia of Italy finished the downhill in a time of 1 minute, 39:22 seconds, beating her by 0.47 seconds. It was Goggia’s first Olympic gold. And keeping Vonn out of second was a surprise performance from Ragnhild Mowinckel of Norway, only 0.09 seconds behind Goggia. Vonn won a gold in the downhill and a bronze in the super-G at the 2010 Vancouver Games, but was forced to sit out Sochi four years later because of injuries. This will likely be Vonn’s last Olympics. "My body just can't, probably can't, take another four years,” she said after the downhill competition. Vonn has dedicated these Olympics to her grandfather, Don Kildow, who died in November. She has one more race, the Alpine combined on Thursday, but she is not a favorite for a medal.

1 Jessie Diggins and Kikkan Randall became the first American cross-country skiers to win a gold medal, coming in first in the women’s team sprint. Their victory comes 42 years after Bill Koch won a bronze in the 30 kilometer race at the 1976 Winter Games, the only other American cross-country skier to capture a medal. Diggins and Randall earned the first-place position after skiing the fastest overall time during the seminfinals.

7 Tina Weirather, the only woman representing the tiny country of Liechtenstein, added to her family’s legacy when she finished third in the super-G. Seven of Liechtenstein’s 10 Alpine skiing medals were won by her family. Her mother, Hanni Wenzel, is a four-time Olympic medalist, with a bronze in slalom in Innsbruck, Austria, in 1976 and gold in slalom and giant slalom and a silver in downhill in Lake Placid in 1980. Her uncle, Andreas Wenzel, has a silver in men’s giant slalom from Lake Placid, and a bronze, again in giant slalom, from Sarajevo in 1984.

3 — Three men from Team USA qualified for the big air final Wednesday — Kyle Mack, Chris Corning and Red Gerard — with the sport making its debut at these Olympic Games. With twelve men in the final, the United States has a solid shot at snagging a spot -- or more -- on the podium Saturday (Friday night in the U.S.). But one of the sport’s biggest names already has been eliminated. Norway’s Marcus Cleveland, 18 and thought to be one of the strongest contenders for gold, fell on his second run.

16 — Heather Bergsma and Brittany Bowe redeemed what had been a disappointing Olympics with a bronze medal in the women’s speed skating team pursuit. Also skating for the U.S. were Mia Manganello and, in the semifinals, Carlijn Schoutens. This is the United States’ first women’s speed skating Olympic medal since 2002, 16 years ago, when Jennifer Rodriguez won bronze in the 1500 meter. Japan broke the Olympic record to win gold in 2 minutes, 53.89 seconds, beating the record previously set by the Netherlands and the team from the Netherlands. The Japanese women have excelled at the Pyeongchang Games, winning five medals.

3-2 The Olympic dreams of the U.S. men’s hockey team were crushed with a 3-2 loss to the Czech Republic. The quarterfinal game ended with a penalty shootout, during which only one player managed to score, Petr Koukal of the Czech Republic. The Czechs move on to play the winner of a match-up between the Olympics Athletes from Russia and Norway, with the gold medal game scheduled for Sunday. The U.S. team was dominated by college students chosen because the National Hockey League refused to allow its athletes to participate in the Olympics. They were hoping to win the U.S.’ first gold medal since the “Miracle on Ice” against the Soviet Union in 1980. Forward Ryan Donato, who attends Harvard University and who scored five goals in the tournament, called the Olympic experience unbelievable.

0.07 The U.S.’s Elana Meyers Taylor and Lauren Gibbs finished second in women's bobsled with a time of 3 minues 22.52 seconds, just 0.07 seconds back from the gold-medal German sled. That’s the slimmest difference between first and second in any Olympic bobsled race. Germany's Mariama Jamanka, who had never won a major international race until now, drove to gold. Canada's Kaillie Humphries teamed with Phylicia George to get third in 3:22.89. It was the third consecutive medal for both Meyers Taylor and Humphries. Meyers Taylor won bronze as a push athlete in 2010 and silver as a driver in 2014; Humphries won gold in each of those Olympic races.

19 Teams from Jamaica and Nigeria also made history in Pyeongchang. The Jamaican bobsled became the first women’s sled from the country to compete in the games. The women finished 19th. Nigerian women became the first African nation to participate in women’s bobsled. They finished 20th. 

Just days after a 6-year-old girl died from flu complications in Connecticut, state leaders are addressing the growing concern about the flu crisis.

Health leaders met with Connecticut U.S. Representative Rosa DeLauro on Tuesday at the Quinnipiac Valley Health District in North Haven to discuss what can be done to combat the flu epidemic.

“We are looking at thousands of people dying right now,” DeLauro said at the beginning of the meeting.

The numbers speak for themselves. The Connecticut Department of Public Health said there have been at least 77 flu-related deaths in the state this season. That number does not include 6-year-old Emma Splan of Norwalk, who died just days after being diagnosed with the flu. To combat such losses, health officials brainstormed about future flu solutions on Tuesday.

“People are dying. We are losing 4,000 people a week, nationwide. This is very, very serious. I categorize it as a public health emergency nationwide,” said DeLauro.

DeLauro wants to add federal money to the Public Health Emergency Fund. This fund acts similar to a disaster relief fund, but instead for public health issues. DeLauro’s bill, the Public Health Emergency Preparedness Act, hopes to add $5 billion to the fund to help people in Connecticut.

“If we can do it for fires, if we can do it for floods, we can do this for the public health,” said DeLauro.

Local health department leaders agree that funding is needed, along with research for a future universal flu vaccine.

“We need to advocate now for improved influenza vaccine, as well as continue doing the preventive activity we are doing now,” said Leslie Balch, the Director of Health at Quinnipiac Valley Health District.

Health leaders are urging people get vaccinated this season and if they are sick, avoid public places such as school or work.

“Get the flu shot. That is the single most important thing that you can do to sort of protect yourselves and your loved ones,” said Byron Kennedy.

Kennedy is the Director of Health for the city of New Haven and said even a 3 week-old baby has been hospitalized with the flu in his district. Kennedy is concerned about local health departments receiving the flu shot vaccines later in the season than commercial pharmacies.

Health leaders also discussed how insurance providers could help in flu prevention, by allowing flu shots to always be covered no matter where people go.

“We don’t want to hold a patient, if you will, or a family hostage about getting something as critical as a flu vaccine,” said Kennedy.

The greatest hope of the group is that the flu epidemic can be stopped and so can the loss of life.