Second Man Arrested in Copper Piping Theft from Occupied Home

A Plainville man was arraigned earlier this month after allegedly entering the basement of an occupied home in September to steal copper piping. Now police are saying his brother, a neighbor of the home targeted, was also involved in the crime.

Detetctives took Jonathan Bolduc into custody Tuesday for his role in the copper piping theft, which took place on the morning of Sept. 28 at a home on East Summer Street in Plantsville.

Bolduc, 26, was arraigned in Bristol Superior Court on Tuesday and is facing charges of third-degree burglary, fifth-degree larceny, first-degree criminal mischief, second-degree filing a false statement and conspiracy charges to commit each, according to state Judicial Branch records.

The 83 E. Summer St. resident remains in state custody at the Hartford Correctional Center, according to state Department of Correction records. He is being held in lieu of a $25,000 bond.

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Southington police first began investigating the case on Sept. 28 when an East Summer Street called to report that his home had been robbed. But it wasn't money, jewelry or electronics they took - it was the copper piping in the home's basement.

“It’s an unusual case. It’s not that uncommon to see theft of copper piping from an unoccupied home, but you typically don’t see that kind of activity at a home someone is living in,” Sgt. Jeffrey Dobratz said in an interview on Dec. 11.

Police reports said the homeowner told officers that he showered in the morning then went to work. When he returned home for lunch, however, the water had been turned off.

After trying to determine what was wrong, police said the homeowner went to the basement and discovered that someone had entered through an outside door to the basement, shut off the water and stolen all the copper pipes out of his home. The damages and losses from the theft were estimated at $2,500, according to Southington police.

The piping was then sold for scrap at Liberty Scrap in Bristol, police said. The scrapyard cooperated fully with the investigation, police said.

Officers obtained information from Liberty Scrap that allowed them to arrest Gregory Bolduc Jr., Jonathan Bolduc's brother, at a Click-It or Ticket checkpoint on Dec. 5. Bolduc also remains in state custody at the Osborne Correctional Institute in Somers in lieu of a $10,000 bond, according to the state Department of Correction.

Gregory Bolduc Jr. is facing the same charges, Judicial Branch records show.

The police report said both men were charged with filing a false statement after they provided misinformation to officers in an attempt to derail the investigation.

Gregory Bolduc is due back in Bristol Superior Court on Jan. 10, 2013. Jonathan Bolduc is due back in court on Jan. 15, 2013.

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