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At 1 a.m. Nov. 21, 2009, a masked individual armed with a handgun entered the Mobil On the Run on East Putnam Avenue in Greenwich and robbed and shot the sole attendant on duty. The shooter and his accomplices may have gotten away that night, but the Greenwich Police Department announced it had arrested three men in the crime.
"I was pretty certain we would make an arrest in this case. ... To actually do it is very satisfying, and we're very happy for the victim in that he may get some closure and a sense of justice," Chief David Ridberg said Wednesday.
The employee offered no resistance during the robbery and handed over cash as demanded. He was then shot in the back of the head as the robber fled. The attendant suffered serious injuries, which required surgery, but survived. "Let's just say the good Lord saved this man," Detective Pasquale Iorfino said.
Detective David Wilson, head of the investigation, said the employee was unavailable for comment. But earlier Wednesday, the man's wife said she was "ecstatic" to hear of the arrests.
During the investigation, a similar but fatal crime occurred in Norwalk. Police believed it might have been committed by the same perpetrators. The two jurisdictions worked together to identify suspects.
"It's an extremely violent crime," said Ridberg. "When you have a case of this severity you're going to put the resources into it to solve it."
The alleged shooter, Alain Leconte, 22 formerly of Stamford has been incarcerated since December 2009 on charges in another armed robbery. He was arrested in the Greenwich robbery by warrant at Stamford Superior Court on Wednesday on charges of criminal attempt at murder, first-degree robbery and first-degree conspiracy to commit robbery. He was arraigned and his bond set at $1 million.
David Wash, 37, of Bridgeport, was located and arrested while driving on I-95 on Tuesday. He was charged with first-degree robbery and first-degree conspiracy to commit robbery. His bond was set at $500,000, and he was arraigned Wednesday. Teran Nelson, 23, of Waterbury, turned himself in to the Greenwich detectives Wednesday morning. He was charged with first-degree robbery and first-degree conspiracy to commit robbery. He was released on a promise to appear in court Dec. 22.
Police indicated the investigation was continuing and more arrests may be possible.
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