New Canaan Police on Thursday arrested a 20-year-old Connecticut woman in connection with a crime ring responsible for the theft of about $90,000 in items from retail stores throughout New England.
Police also have secured an arrest warrant for a second individual who currently is incarcerated on Long Island, officials said, and expect to charge a third person.
The Windsor woman now in custody was charged with third-degree larceny and conspiracy to commit third-degree larceny.
Police had said last month that they had identified some of those involved in a run of thefts from the Ralph Lauren store on Elm Street in October.
The larcenies started on the afternoon of Oct. 3, when $300 worth of merchandise was stolen, followed quickly by thefts on Oct. 4 ($5,000) and Oct. 7 ($6,000), police said.
Then, during a fourth attempt on Oct. 13, police spotted the crew as members approached the high-end clothing store, and they fled downtown in a car, crashed and took off on foot, eluding authorities.
Following the incident, a multi-state task force formed to investigate similar crimes in Massachusetts, Vermont, New York, Connecticut and Maine, according to a press release issued by New Canaan Police Lt. Jason Ferraro. That investigation led to police identifying the Windsor woman.
On Monday, she was involved in a pursuit with Massachusetts and Connecticut state police for committing similar crimes in Auburn, Mass. Connecticut State Police Troop C took her into custody. New Canaan Police charged her. She was released on $25,000 bond and scheduled to appear Dec. 26 in state Superior Court in Norwalk.