Multiple car thefts result in 2 deaths

POUGHKEEPSIE —  The Dutchess County Sheriff’s office is continuing investigation into multiple vehicles stolen during the late-night hours of Monday, March 27, and early morning Tuesday, March 28, in northern Dutchess County and Connecticut. Law enforcement believe these thefts are the work of an organized group operated out of Connecticut.

Connecticut officials reported the drowning death of a 17-year-old Waterbury high-school student who attempted to flee officers who were investigating stolen cars from Millerton, N.Y., and Ridgefield, Conn.

When discovered by police around noon on Tuesday, March 28, the teen was sitting in one of the stolen vehicles with three other teenagers ages 14, 16 and 17. Two of the teens ran into nearby woods and one was tackled by police, but the other entered Lakewood Lake and drowned.

The three surviving teens have been charged with theft of a stolen motor vehicle and interfering with police. Reportedly the police knew the teens from previous arrests.

The Millerton Jeep Cherokee recovered In Waterbury near the scene was stolen on March 27/28 on Dutchess Avenue in the heart of the Village of Millerton and returned to the owners a few days later.

Another teen stole a Toyota 4 Runner stolen in Connecticut during the same evening hours and later crashed head-on into a 2017 Chevrolet van on Route 9 in the Town of Rhinebeck, killing driver Jonathan Kiech.

The 14-year-old driver of the stolen vehicle suffered minor injuries and was remanded to a secure detention facility.

Capt. John Watterson of the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office told The Millerton News that there has been a recent uptick in car thefts along the Connecticut/New York border. Watterson cautioned residents to never leave keys or automatic fobs inside a car; to lock their cars; remove valuables; and to never confront perpetrators, as they are considered armed and dangerous