Cash, not toys, was the target of a Naugatuck man arrested for stealing $600 from The Toy Chest on River Road in the early morning hours of Dec. 13. According to police, a glass door on the southeast side of the building was badly damaged and forced open.
With the help of video surveillance and cooperation with Naugatuck Police, Michael Spirer, 29, of 16 Deacon’s Lane, was arrested the same day and charged with third-degree burglary, a felony; sixth-degree larceny, criminal mischief and interfering with an officer, misdemeanors; and refusal to be fingerprinted, a violation.
Spirer was arrested in Naugatuck after being stopped and found in possession of narcotics at 7:15 a.m., and Wilton police were able to communicate with Naugatuck officers using an NCIC computer system.
A money bag from the store was found in his possession; about $200 was unaccounted for.
Officers confirmed the suspect had been apprehended, and Spirer, a former employee of The Toy Chest, was arrested and taken to Wilton Police Department, where officers said he was uncooperative and refused to have his fingerprints taken.
Spirer had a court date of Dec. 14, and according to information on the Norwalk Court website bond was set at $5,000 and he was not released from custody.
