Defendant In 2021 Middletown Shooting Gets 16-Plus Years

MIDDLETOWN, CT — A man implicated in a 2021 shooting in Middletown is to spend more than 16 years in prison a judge has ordered.

Middlesex State's Attorney Michael A. Gailor said that, on Wednesday Judge Laura Flynn Baldini sentenced Antwan Rufus, 36, of Middletown, to 16-and-a-half years in prison, followed by 10-and-a-half years of special parole for shooting a man and possessing an illegal firearm in Middletown in 2021.

On Oct. 25, Rufus was found guilty after a jury trial in Middletown Superior Court of two counts of first-degree assault, carrying a pistol without a permit, carrying a weapon in a motor vehicle, criminal Possession of a firearm and criminal possession of a pistol.

According to case records, Rufus exited a car in Traverse Square in Middletown and began shooting at a man he had previously threatened. Rufus, who was prohibited from possessing firearms due to prior felony convictions, fired six shots at the person and struck him "multiple times," leaving him seriously injured, according to case records.

The case was prosecuted by Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney Jason Germain.

Gailor and Germain praised both Middletown and Meriden police and the State Forensic Laboratory for their investigative efforts.