Man Accused Of Sexual Assault Fled U.S., Gets Arrested: Hamden PD

HAMDEN, CT — A man accused of sexually assaulting a juvenile in 2013 was arrested Friday after police said he fled to Ecuador and failed to appear in court for several years.

Edwin Arpi, 29, of Corbin Road in Hamden, was charged with first-degree failure to appear. He was being held in lieu of a $350,000 bond with a court date of June 18.

The arrest stems from an incident on March 30, 2013, when police responded to the area of Mountain Road on the report of a sexual assault that involved strangulation, according to Capt. Ronald Smith. Local residents had alerted police that a young woman was banging on their doors and screaming for help, Smith said.

The juvenile victim told police that she was sexually assaulted by Arpi, who she called a “friend,” while inside his vehicle, according to Smith. The victim said she met Arpi on a social media networking site.

“Officers ascertained that Arpi strangled the victim during the assault and that he had threatened to kill her,” Smith wrote in a news release. “She attempted to contact police during the violent assault, however, Arpi grabbed her cell phone. She eventually escaped from the vehicle, in search of help.”

Police later found Arpi sleeping inside his vehicle, according to Smith. He was arrested and taken to police headquarters.

Arpi, who was 21 at the time of his arrest, was charged with first-degree sexual assault, first-degree unlawful restraint, third-degree strangulation, risk of injury to a minor and interfering with an emergency call.

Arpi was released after posting a $250,000 bond and failed to appear in court on his scheduled date, according to Smith.

Hamden police, with the assistance of the U.S. Marshal Service Connecticut Violent Fugitive Task Force, tried to find Arpi but officers confirmed that he took an outbound flight to Ecuador in August 2015, according to Smith.

Police learned this month that Arpi had returned to the United States. On March 26, Detective Mark Sheppard and Detective Andrew Lipford conducted surveillance and saw Arpi walking on State Street and immediately took him into custody, according to Smith.

In addition to the Hamden charge, Arpi was arrested on six outstanding arrest warrants. He was charged with four counts of first-degree failure to appear (East Haven Police Department, Madison Police Department, two, and Yale University Police Department), second-degree failure to appear (Guilford Police Department) and failure to respond (Connecticut State Police).