A local man has been arrested for allegedly stealing the purse of an elderly woman in the garage of her Shelton home, pulling her to the ground in the process of committing the crime.
The 73-year-old woman had to crawl out of her garage and, lying in the snow, yell for help for 25 minutes until someone heard her.
The suspect was caught with the help of a surveillance camera video.
Michael Dean, 55, of Derby was charged with first-degree burglary, second-degree assault of the elderly, third-degree robbery, and second-degree larceny.
Dean was arrested March 13 on a warrant and is being held on a $100,000 bond. If he does not post bond, he will be arraigned at state Superior Court in Derby on March 16.
Felt someone tugging at purse
On Feb. 28 at about 7:30 p.m., the Shelton police received a 9-1-1 call reporting an elderly female was robbed at her home, which is located off of Coram Road.
The victim told police that she went to do an errand in Derby and then drove to her home. She pulled her vehicle into her garage and closed the garage door.
When she exited her vehicle, she felt someone tugging at her pursue from behind. Police said the suspect pulled the victim to the ground and stole her purse.
Crawled outside to seek help
The victim was unable to get up after the attack, but she managed to crawl out of the garage to locate help.
The victim was outside lying in the snow and yelling for help for approximately 25 minutes until a neighbor heard the cry for help and called police. EMS was called to the scene to evaluate the victim.
Shelton detectives canvassed the area where the victim was prior to the robbery, and were able to locate outside surveillance video.
The video and the subsequent investigation by detectives led to the identification and arrest of Dean, police said. He is believed to have followed the woman in his own vehicle as she drove from the Derby location to her Shelton home, according to police.