A Naugatuck man, with a history of following women home from public places, was arrested for allegedly doing it again.
Wolcott’s police chief says his officers have arrested 60-year-old Gerald Dalessio Jr. three times within the last month.
Each time he gets arrested, his bond goes up, but each time he would be released on a promise to appear. But not this time.
On Saturday afternoon, a Wolcott woman called police saying a man was in his car, following her after she left an event at Waterbury’s Municipal Stadium.
The woman told police, he pulled alongside her and then tailed her into town.
She recognized Dalessio after seeing his photo on Facebook following a recent arrest. She called 9-1-1 and pulled into the police station.
Police found him on Woodtick Road, where an officer had to use a stun gun on him in order to get him to comply.
“And this time, what did we find in the car, other than drug paraphernalia, sex toys, lubricant. You know it seems he’s following women around with bad intentions on his mind,” said Wolcott Police Chief Edward Stephens.
In June, Dalessio was accused of following a different Wolcott woman home from the Brass Mill Center in Waterbury.
Wolcott police have had other run-ins with him as well.
“Dalessio was walking through people’s property, doesn’t belong up there, has a relative who lives in the area, had told him in the past, do not come around here,” Stephens said.
He’s been arrested a number of times in Waterbury for allegedly following women to their homes.
Stephens says he’s grateful Dalessio is now off the streets, saying you never know what could happen, pointing to the Cheshire home invasion as a case where someone was followed home.
“We don’t know what the intentions are of these people, what they’re going to do. We were able to stop him before anything tragic happened, if it would have,” Stephens said.
Between Wolcott’s $150,000 bond and a $75,000 bond on Waterbury’s most recent charges, Stephens says he’s pretty confident Dalessio Jr. won’t be getting out any time soon.
He is due back in court in September.
