Police Chief to Criminals: 'If You're Going to do Something Bad, Don't Come to Bedford'

Bedford Police Chief John Bryfonski told Bedford residents last night that he'd like nothing more than to put their security concerns at ease.

Right now, he can't do that with complete certainty. But what he did promise is one of the safest communities in one of the safest states in the country, which will continue to be protected by one of the top police forces he's seen in his 35-plus years in law enforcement.

It's members of that same group of professionals that have Bryfonski so confident the assailant in last week's reported home invasion case will be captured and brought to justice.

"You aren't going to find any better investigative minds out there than these gentlemen and the ladies that are working on this case," he told dozens of residents during last night's community meeting at Bedford High School. "They are going to solve this thing. Trust me when I tell you, we will bring this person to justice. We're going to find him. It may not be today, it may not be tomorrow, it may not be next week, but we're going to find him."

Bryfonski told those who attended the meeting that police are now focused on finding a suspect that has been described as a dark-skinned male who is roughly 6-feet tall.

He also noted than investigators have compiled a "mountain of forensic evidence," though he cannot yet say if the crime was random or targeted.

"I wish that I could say is that it was not random, but I don't have that sense of confidence based on the information the investigators have established to be able to say that," he said. "I wish I had a name. I wish that I could say we're within minutes of making an arrest, and we may be because these things change so often."

Bryfonski also apologized to residents for a misinterpreted messages immediately following the attack.

"For me to come out into the public realm and say immediately that everyone should be alert and be concerned about their safety would have initiated a public alarm that yet was not substantial enough to talk about," he said.

Still, the yet-to-be identified suspect would be taking great risk to attempt a similar crime in Bedford, said Bryfonski.

"Some folks would say that the safest day to fly is after a crash," he said. "I'm not sure that analogy holds true here, but let me say that it would be abundantly stupid or irrational for someone to come into Bedford and to try to commit a similar or like crime.

"They need to recognize, and I'm speaking to the criminal community, so pay attention: We're out there, we're looking for you, we're going to find you and we're going to get to you before you commit a crime so if you're going to do something bad, don't come to Bedford."

Bedford Patch will continue to follow this case and will provide updates as they come available. In the meantime, follow us on our Facebook page, Twitter feed, and don't forget to sign up for our FREE daily newsletter and breaking news alerts.