CT Carjacking Chaos: Victim Recounts Being Dragged, Threatened

According to a CT State Police press release, a New Britain man was arrested on January 2, 2025, following an investigation into a robbery that occurred nearly a year earlier.

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Gerard Arlonzo Hines, 22, was taken from the Cheshire Correctional Center to Torrington Superior Court where he was served with an arrest warrant. The charges stem from a robbery and carjacking incident that took place on January 9, 2024, in Bethlehem, Connecticut.

The investigation began when state police were called to a private property in Bethlehem after reports of an armed carjacking. The victim, a New York resident working on the property, was waiting for a delivery in his black 2020 Audi when he saw a man approaching a white Mazda parked nearby. Believing the delivery had arrived, the victim got out of his car and approached the Mazda. It was then that he noticed a suspect running towards his running vehicle.

According to the victim, he attempted to stop the suspect from stealing his car by grabbing onto the driver’s side door and steering wheel as the suspect began to reverse the Audi. The victim allegedly heard threats to shoot him if he didn’t let go, although he did not see a weapon. As the suspect drove off erratically, the victim was dragged briefly by the car before losing his grip and falling to the ground. The suspect’s vehicle fled the scene, and the victim, unable to use his phone which was left in his car, flagged down state police for help.

State police later recovered the Audi the following day in New Britain. Hines and a juvenile were arrested in connection with property crimes in New Britain and surrounding areas. Although the victim's personal items were not found in the stolen vehicle, dash camera footage from New Britain detectives say they were able to verify the victim’s version of events. The footage clearly captured Hines' voice, and it showed him allegedly threatening to shoot the victim multiple times during the robbery.

The investigation also uncovered that the white Mazda involved in the carjacking had been stolen days earlier in Ridgefield. DNA analysis of swabs taken from the vehicle reportedly were a match for Hines. Hines is currently being held on a $250,000 bond and is scheduled for arraignment at Torrington Superior Court.

Charges Facing Gerard Arlonzo Hines:

• Threatening 1st Degree - Displays/Represents Firearm (C.G.S. 53a-61aa(a)(3))
• Robbery 1st Degree (C.G.S. 53a-134)
• Robbery Involving Occupied Motor Vehicle (C.G.S. 53a-136a)

Bethlehem, New Britain, Torrington, Ridgefield and New York. That is "Live & Local" if I may say so.

My cousin had a bunch of these Audis over the years, they are sweet looking but every time you turn around the thing was in the shop. Yes, that was my takeaway.

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