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Victim chased robbery suspect in New Haven until he was captured by off-duty officer

A suspect was caught in New Haven the resident of home he was burglarizing chased him down. A woman let the suspect into the building on Monday morning, and he ...
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A suspect was caught in New Haven the resident of home he was burglarizing chased him down.

A woman let the suspect into the building on Monday morning, and he subsequently checked the doors to each apartment to see if they were unlocked.

William Genova, 21, woke up to his alarm clock at 9 a.m. Monday morning and saw a black man sitting at his desk unplugging his laptop. The man put the computer down and walked out of the bedroom, but Genova followed and questioned him about if anything else was taken. The suspect said no and to let him go or else there would be violent consequences.

Genova chased the suspect through several backyards, and as he approached the Marriott Hotel on Dwight Street he yelled for someone to call the police.

Eventually the suspect stopped running to speak with the  victim and prove he hadn’t taken anything by showing Genova the contents of his duffel bag. During this interaction a New Haven officer walking home from work–he was still in uniform–approached the two to see what was happening. This caused the suspect to start running again.

The officer fought with the suspect and was pepper sprayed, but he was able to arrest Eleam Djamal, 31, of New Haven. Djamal is a convicted felon from Pennsylvania and has committed robberies and burglaries across the country, including another robbery in Genova’s building on Saturday during which he stole a laptop.

Djamal was in New Haven from Kansas City on business, but the company he was selling magazines for abandoned him in Connecticut on Friday. He said he targeted the building in question because he knew students lived there.

In the end, it was determined that Djamal stole $40 from Genova’s desk.

Djamal was charged with burglary in the second degree, criminal attempt to commit larceny in the fourth degree, larceny in the sixth degree, threatening and assault on a police officer.

Djamal is in the New Haven Police Department’s custody, but he is also a fugitive from justice in other jurisdictions.

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