New York men charged with copper wire theft from Lewes Lowe’s
Three New York men face charges after police say they stole copper wire from the Lewes Lowe’s store Sept. 18, and then crashed on Route 1 after fleeing.
The men drove to Lowe’s on Plantation Road about 11:30 a.m. in a Chrysler 300 with Florida registration when two of them went inside and left with a large quantity of copper wire, said Sgt. India Sturgis of the Delaware State Police.
They loaded up the car and drove northbound on Route 1, Sturgis said. Police tried to stop the car as it headed northbound, and the car made a U-turn and speeding southbound on Route 1. For safety reasons, Sturgis said, the pursuit was terminated, but shortly later the Chrysler collided with a guardrail south of Route 16. The impact of the collision caused the Chrysler to catch fire, Sturgis said, and the three men ran from the scene. They were caught near the Broadkill River, she said.
Police learned the crash happened when the Chrysler struck the rear bumper of a Honda Accord traveling southbound driven by a 34-year-old Frederica man. When the Chrysler lost control and ran into the guardrail, Sturgis said, a piece of the guardrail impaled the windshield of a Ford Explorer traveling northbound on Route 1 and driven by a 69-year-old Wilmington man. Neither the Frederica or Wilmington men were injured during the crash, Sturgis said. The crash blocked Route 1 traffic for more than an hour as many people traveled northbound from Bike Week in Ocean City, Md.
The three New York men sustained minor injuries and were treated and released from an area hospital.
Alexander Boysie, 18, of St. Albans, N.Y.; Justin Ramsaran, 19, of South Richmond Hill, N.Y.; and Ronnie Bridgelal, 20, of Brooklyn, N.Y., were arraigned at Justice of the Peace Court 3 and charged with felony shoplifting over $1,500, wearing a disguise during the commission of a felony, criminal mischief over $5,000, second-degree conspiracy, and resisting arrest. Ramsaran was also charged with four counts of first-degree reckless endangering and several traffic violations.
They were all committed to Sussex Correctional Institution in default of cash bail: Boysie and Bridgelal on $8,500, and Ramsaran on $30,750.
