The investigation is ongoing into the brazen theft of an Aston Martin in Westport and other vehicles recovered in Berlin.
Westport police said the car, and three others, were recovered at a rental property on Orchard Road in Berlin Monday. 39-year-old Derrick McGill was arrested at the Orchard Road residence. He faces eight charges - one of which was for operating an illegal chop shop.
“What they are looking to do is either re-vin a car, remove the tracking tech from the vehicles, different plates, all in an effort to obviously sell a high-end vehicle like the Aston Martin, the BMWs, the Porches, at a ridiculously discounted price to some unsuspecting person,” Westport Police Lt. Eric Woods said.
He said in his 23-year law enforcement career, he has never had to issue that charge.
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“The benefit to the homeowner, the owner of this vehicle, is they weren’t trying to smash these up, they were trying to keep them in pristine condition so they could offload them," Woods said.
Berlin police assisted in the arrest in their town, though they say their involvement was limited. But they added the Orchard Road residence is not new to them.
“We have some history with this residence in the past, it has been listed online as a rental property and have had to respond to disperse large parties," Berlin Deputy Chief Drew Gallupe said.
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He said having a chop shop operating out of a home is unusual, and though they have had to work with the owner of the home multiple times, never for something like car thefts.
“We haven’t had any other experiences like that at this house," Gallupe said.
A 16-year-old in Waterbury was also arrested in connection with the two car thefts in Westport. At the residence, besides the Aston Martin, a BMW from Westport, another BMW from Ridgefield and a Porsche from Rhode Island were all recovered.
NBC Connecticut attempted to speak with the owner or anyone else living at the home, but no one answered.
Westport police also added they don’t believe this investigation ends in Berlin, and are expecting more arrests on the horizon.
“We are going to follow those leads wherever it brings us, I don’t think this ended in Berlin, no," Woods said.
