East Haven Man, 37, Charged In February Fire Truck Hit & Run: Police

EAST HAVEN, CT — An arrest has been made in connection with the Feb. 11 hit-and-run where a driver struck a fire engine responding to an emergency call and fled the scene, East Haven police said.

Joshua Bethke, 37, of East Haven, who police said denied involvement, was charged with Evading Responsibility Resulting in Property Damage.

On that date, at around 6:30 p.m., an East Haven Fire Department engine was struck while enroute to a structure fire in the Foxon area, police spokesperson Capt. Joseph M. Murgo said.

According to Murgo, Engine 4, with its emergency lights and sirens activated, was traveling northbound on Hemingway Avenue when a Scion TC failed to yield and turned directly in front of the fire truck. The collision caused significant front-end damage to Engine 4 but fortunately, no injuries were reported.

The driver of the Scion fled the scene, continuing northbound on Hemingway Avenue before turning westbound onto Edward Street, Murgo said.

Images of the damaged fire engine along with a description of the evading vehicle were shared on multiple social media platforms, and tips from the public began coming in, police noted.

Officers later located the vehicle and made contact with the operator, later identified as Bethke. His vehicle, a 2015 Scion TC, had fresh damage consistent with that reported by East Haven Fire Department personnel and several witnesses who remained at the scene, Murgo said. A side mirror cover found at the scene was determined to belong to Bethke’s vehicle, which was missing the mirror cover when officers made contact with him, police said.

Bethke denied involvement at the time, and the investigation continued, according to Murgo.

Sgt. Ryan Gorman submitted an arrest warrant affidavit for Bethke, which was approved on March 25.

Murgo said when Bethke became aware of the active arrest warrant, he turned himself in. After being charged by East Haven police, he was released on Written Promise to Appear and is scheduled to appear in court on April 3.

"We are pleased to learn of this arrest. More importantly, we are glad no innocent townspeople, or our firefighters were injured in this act of carelessness and disregard for an emergency vehicle that was trying to get to an emergency," East Haven Fire Chief Matthew Marcarelli said. "The EHFD would also like to thank the East Haven Police Department for their diligent police work, as well as the numerous townspeople that provided tips to the fire department as to the driver’s identity and the vehicle’s location following the incident."