Bias Arrest Made After Man Harassed Guilford Family At Restaurant

GUILFORD, CT - The Guilford Police were made aware of an incident that had taken place in a local establishment on Whitfield St. that they later determined was a local family being victim to racially based intimidation and threatening.

The family, which included two juveniles, were intimidated and threatened by a male, later identified as Brendan Garvey, 55 years old of New Haven.

Garvey, while in the same establishment as the victim family, forced uninvited interaction with them, inferring, based on their perceived heritage, that they did not belong in Guilford. Garvey went on to make threatening hand gestures toward the family, upsetting and frightening all members of the family to include the juveniles.

The Guilford Police immediately investigated the complaint and attempted to locate him without success. A warrant for Garvey’s arrest was secured following the investigation. Garvey was located today at 1630 hours and arrested on the warrant.

He was charged with Connecticut General Statutes 53a-181k:Intimidation Based on Bigotry or Bias in the Second Degree, 53a-62: Threatening in the Second Degree and 53a-181: Breach of Peace in the Second Degree. Garvey is currently being held in Guilford on a $10,000 bond and is scheduled to be arraigned in New Haven Friday.

This will never be tolerated in Guilford. We appreciate the courage and willingness of the victims in this case to come forward and help ensure that no one else will be victimized by such hateful and ignorant behavior.

Lieutenant Tim Bernier #54Field Services CommanderGuilford Police Department400 Church St., Guilford CT 06437(203) 453 8059 (Desk)(203) 453 8061 .