Stratford man guilty of trying to kill cop
By MICHAEL P. MAYKO
Article Last Updated: 06/17/2008 01:24:46 AM EDT
HARTFORD — A U.S. District Court jury needed only two hours of deliberation Monday to convict a Stratford man for attempting to kill a Trumbull police officer in a shootout during a gambling raid on a Bridgeport gas station last fall.
John Bell, 55, of Ridge Road, Stratford, now faces up to 20 years in prison for shooting at Trumbull Police Officer Scott Murray, a member of the FBI's Safe Street's Task Force, during their Oct. 1, 2007 raid on Buzz's Mobil Gas, 2394 Main St.
Neither Murray nor any other member of the Task Force was wounded in the shooting. Bell was shot in the right arm and left wrist. He said he thought he was being robbed.
In addition to the attempted murder charge, the jury convicted Bell of assaulting, resisting or impeding Murray in the performance of his duties and using a .44 caliber Taurus in a crime of violence.
Bell was not found guilty on a charge of attempted murder of Trumbull Police Detective. Kevin Hammel. Hammel accompanied Murray when the pair approached the office door at about 8:30 p.m. The officers said they yelled "police with a search warrant" before the shooting occurred.
Following the shooting, Bell, a station employee, told a State Police trooper he was drinking a can of beer and counting cigarettes when he saw a man run through the front door. Bell said he aimed his gun at the man and several shots were fired before he retreated behind an oil rack, according to an affidavit filed by FBI Special Agent Mark Lauer.
Once behind the rack, Bell said he could see a police cruiser and a uniformed Bridgeport police officer in the lot and decided to surrender, according to Lauer's affidavit.
A subsequent toxicology test determined Bell had a blood alcohol level of .12. In Connecticut, a person over 21 years of age is considered legally intoxicated when the blood alcohol level reaches .08.
Senior U.S. District Judge Alfred Covello presided over Bell's trial which began June 10. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Gustafson and Tracy Lee Dayton.
Bell still faces state charges stemming from the shooting. Those include first-degree assault; assault on a peace officer; reckless endangerment and unlawful discharge of a firearm.
"Those charges are still pending," said Supervisory Assistant State's Attorney John Smriga.
The shooting occurred while members of the Task Force, which includes local police and FBI agents, were serving search warrants on Buzz's Mobil Gas. The station is owned by Joseph Buzzanca, of Nuthatch Hill Road, Trumbull.
Buzzanca was charged with gambling; possession of a gambling device; and transmission of gambling information.
Task Force members believe Buzzanca was running a bookmaking operation out of his home and gas station. They used an informant to place bets on sporting events with Buzzanca, according to police.  |