Ready everybody? Good evening.
My name is Officer Daniel Garrett and
I'm the Public Information Officer here
at the Naugatuck Police Department.
As you all know, we are here
tonight to provide the community
with confirmation that Christopher
Francis Queeney has been apprehended
and is currently in police custody.
Here with me tonight,
we have Naugatuck Police Chief
Colin McAllister,
Naugatuck Captain Antonio Bastos,
Naugatuck Detective Lieutenant Ryan
Burns and representing our federal partners,
supervisory special agent of the FBI
Violent Crimes Task Force Joseph Altimari.
Chief McAllister will now speak
on the events of Francis Francis
Quinn's capture and apprehension.
Thank you for attending this evening.
Just want to bring everybody up to
speed within half what's happened
and transpired in the last 20 hours
since our press conference that we
held in New Haven at FBI headquarters.
First of all, I would acknowledge
the community for answering our call
for assistance and helping us bring
to justice this dangerous fugitive
who's a clear threat to community,
to our Community.
It's a direct result of our community,
locally as well as statewide that
we've been receiving tips and
information and ultimately led
to the information that brought
Francis Queeney into custody today.
The background that led to him being
taken into custody began earlier today,
just shortly after 3:00 PM,
when a citizen who believed that
he recognized a man sitting at
the bus station in Waterbury in
the area of #400 Grand St was in
fact Christopher Francis Sweeney.
This concerned member of the Community
made a phone call to law enforcement,
alerted Waterbury police that he believed
Francis Queeney was at the bus station.
And that resulted in a significant
response from the city of
Waterbury Police Department.
Waterbury police officers arrived and,
after establishing a dialogue
with Francis Queeney,
ultimately were able to take him
into custody without incident.
I'm glad to say that at this time no
one else was injured as a result of
taking in Francis Quinito custody again.
I want to recognize and commend
the Waterbury Police Department
for their actions earlier today
and the tremendous job that they
did with this difficult case.
Information as well as footage for
that arrest is actually going to be
released and made available to the
community as well as the media on their
social media platforms very shortly.
So you will have access to the body.
On cameras of those officers,
as well as dash camera footage of that.
Ohh,
I'd also like to take an opportunity to
recognize and thank our law enforcement
partners who have been working
with us nonstop since the original
incident occurred on November 18th.
I have us where our federal partners as
well as the Connecticut State Police,
the city of Waterbury police,
the New Haven Police Department.
And obviously the FBI as well too.
It's through us and through working with
the community that we're ultimately
able to take Francis Queeney into custody.
As well as you,
the members of the media who have been
with us at these various updates,
monitoring our social media broadcasting
our updates to the Community and
to the public.
And also acknowledging the Billboard
campaign which was put forward
yesterday and announced that the FBI
headquarters in New Haven as well.
Um, lastly,
I'd like to thank the men and women
of the Naugatuck Police Department.
They have been working around
the clock since this,
the original murder that
occurred on November 18th.
These officers work through the holidays.
They worked for the past two weeks nonstop,
driven by their commitment to
the cause of bringing justice
to baby Camilla.
This is something that
that is carried with them.
They are going to continue to
carry with them this case,
probably for the rest of their lives.
This is something that isn't going to be.
Forgotten by any Members of this agency.
Just due to the nature of this case and
the heinous nature of the crime that
was committed against baby Camilla,
our officers feel that this is something
that they're their duty and obligation
to act as baby camillo's voice,
so she no longer has.
Lastly, I'd like to have my
message to address the family.
Nothing can ease the pain that the
family is experiencing as a result
of this tragic loss of their child
taken from them far too soon.
But we hope that they can breathe
easier knowing that this violent
criminal has been taken into
custody and he's off the streets.
He was no longer a threat to the community
as well As for those family members.
At this point,
I would just like to bring forward agent
Ultimato just say a few words himself
from our federal partners representing them.
Good evening. My name is Joseph Altimari
JOSEPHALTIMARI.
I'm supervisory special agent,
FBI and our violent Crimes task force.
We are grateful for our strong
relationships with all of our law
enforcement partners and especially
proud of the Waterbury Police
Department in this instance.
This case highlights the value
of community members assisting
law enforcement in apprehending
violent offenders.
Thank you.
Um, at this time I could open up to several
questions if you have any emotional case.
What are you feeling right now? So
I'm I think that there's same feeling
that the community has at this point,
which is a sense of relief knowing that
this dangerous criminal has been brought
taken into custody and brought up to St.
I'm sorry. No.
I don't want to comment on that
active part of the investigation,
do we? Do we have a motive yet?
No, no, there's still,
there's still no motive for that.
But again, that is also something that's
going to be part of our investigation.
Were you also surprised to see him
just one city away, one time away?
Despite the fact that we obviously been
working with with our federal partners,
we've also been working with that
scenario that he may be very close
and one of the neighboring cities that
would never ruled out that possibility.
Coming as you figure out where
he's been and he was harboring.
So this investigation as far as his
movements and his whereabouts for the
last two weeks is something that we
are still going to be looking into.
So we can't rule out that there
may be additional arrests if we
can determine that somebody was
assisting or or helping him.
I think that the the body Cam
footage and the in car camera
footage will speak for itself.
Again. I want to draw attention
to the the professionalism,
the Waterbury Police Department of
how they took this file and offender
into custody without incident.
My understanding of it was just,
it was just moments before they
were there and you said you
had a conversation with them.
Like how did that go?
They walked up just to
verify that with him or
well they they establish a
dialogue with him and you'll see
that play out in in the footage
of how that transpired with him.
You know, this, this did come about as a
result of somebody who recognized him.
Who brought this forward?
Just need to change the appearance.
Um, I did personally speak
with the the Community Member
who provided us with that tip,
and he said that he he recognized him,
although he didn't.
He felt that he has changed his appearance,
but it was still enough that
he did he did recognize.
Any additional charges that you're expecting?
Again, we can't rule out
any additional charges.
Presented. Correct.
So Francis Queeney will be
presented at Waterbury Superior
Court on Monday morning.
He also has an outstanding warrant
with the City of Waterbury police
for the incident that occurred.
In the parking lot of a business
that domestic dispute that occurred
where he removed his ankle bracelet
as well as smashing the telephones.
I don't want to comment on specific judicial
aspect of that yet, but can you just walk
through the process of of bringing in
from Waterbury here and not to talk just
everything that's gone on since then?
And so he was taken into custody
by the city of Waterbury police,
transported to their Police Department,
we sent our officers there and he was
taken into custody from Waterbury
and transported back here to to
Naugatuck police where it's being
held. Have you spoken to
the family since the?
Correct. Yes, we did.
We spoke to the family and
and they were one of the first
phone calls we made to notify
them that he had been taken
into custody. What was their reaction?
I'd I'd imagine it was. It was
specifically just being relieved.
Yes, I did. On the the IT was
a community member who who's
been following social media,
they've been following the
media coverage of this.
It was a local member of our
community and as a result of that
they they made that phone call.
So I think that's a testament to
to the media's coverage of this
as well as the public working
together with us to help bring
francischini into custody.
Is there any notion that somebody was
helping Francis Sweeney or where he's been
and that's something we'll be looking into?
Community can be assured
he's going to be in custody,
correct? He's being held
on a $5 million bond.
His parole status has been
revoked and additionally,
he does have a bond on that incident
from Waterbury on that warrant.
So I want to reassure the Community
here tonight that he will not
be released back out there.
He is being held on those charges.
And if I could reassure the community
and and put them at ease that that
he's not going to be released prior
to any of his court proceedings.
Have you had direct communication?
I personally have not, but we
do stay in contact with them,
the family on a near daily
basis. That's that's part of our
our follow up as a result of this.
To answer those questions,
but didn't have any other.
I still don't wanna comment
specifically on the family dinner
tomorrow, Sir. 1st birthday. Is there
anything special that's gonna happen?
I know that the community's been
rallying around that and I think
that I think that Naugatuck is is
choosing to mark that occasion.
In different ways,
I think there's numerous examples
of that on social media that
that could address how Naugatuck
is going to react to that,
to that date tomorrow.
Alright. Well, I'd like to thank
everybody for attending this
evening and again thank you for
your assistance throughout the past
several weeks for keeping this.
In front of the news,
it's ultimately paid dividends
in terms of being able to bring
Francis Queeney into custody here
and bringing some closure for what
was definitely just a horrific and
violent case for our Community and
the overall region and Connecticut.
So thank you.