Teens Party and Steal from Colchester Family Away on Vacation: Police

Police are looking for several teens who they said stole items worth thousands of dollars from a Colchester home on Felicia Baber Lane. 

Another teen, who was trusted to take care of it while the owner was away, let them into the house, according to police. 

The homeowner, Paula Uccello, told NBC Connecticut that she asked a 17-year-old family friend to watch her house and feed her dog while she was away for two weeks. 

When Uccello came home yesterday, the teen confessed she invited over friends who found the keys to Uccello’s cellar and drank her alcohol, she said. 

Uccello said they also stole expensive items, including headphones and watches. 

“I’m very sorry something like this happened,” Michele O’Neill, a neighbor, said. “In all the time we’ve lived here, we’ve never had any trouble.” 

Jennifer Korczak, who’s lived in Colchester for decades, said the theft doesn’t come as a shock, even in a safe neighborhood. 

“Kids make bad choices, and it takes them awhile to kind of grow up and realize it’s not OK to do this kind of stuff,” Korczak said. 

Pat Demar, a neighbor and local businessman, knows the Uccello family well and was shocked to hear his hardworking friends were targeted. 

“The kids today, if they can steal it, they don’t have to work for it. I’m pretty shocked. Pretty upset. I hope they get to the bottom of it,” Demar said. 

State police said that once the teens responsible are found, they could be charged with larceny and for possession of alcohol by a minor. 

The 17-year-old house sitter could be held responsible for serving it.

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