Holly MatkinHartford, CT – A violent suspect threatened to kill a Connecticut state trooper and led officers on a high-speed chase before later pulling a knife on troopers who came to arrest him, according to investigators.
Police said they had at least six run-ins with 29-year-old Raymond Lapinski over the course of the month of April alone, CT Insider reported.
But he really did himself in on April 24, when he spotted a Connecticut State Police (CSP) sergeant on Asylum Street at about 10:30 a.m.
The sergeant said he was on duty when Lapinski yelled at him, asking him if he was a “cop,” CT Insider reported.
The sergeant confirmed he was a law enforcement officer, WFSB reported.
The suspect then allegedly told the sergeant he “kills cops” and threatened to murder him, according to CSP.
The sergeant went to take Lapinski into custody, at which point the suspect allegedly drove a short distance away and stopped his car, CT Insider reported.
Lapinski then allegedly leaned out his car window and made an “obscene hand gesture” before screaming profanities and speeding away.
The sergeant spotted the suspect on Pulaski Circle a short while later and attempted to pull him over, but Lapinski refused to stop and took off down Interstate 91 northbound at speeds topping 100 miles per hour, according to the CSP.
The sergeant ultimately terminated the pursuit near Exit 28 due to concerns about public safety, CT Insider reported.
Although the suspect initially escaped, investigators identified him as the registered owner of the vehicle and discovered he also had two active warrants for his arrest out of two separate jurisdictions.
Investigators tracked Lapinski down in the area of Ann Ucello Street and Asylum Avenue at approximately 9:15 a.m. the following day, CT Insider reported.
He was on foot at the time, according to WFSB.
CSP said the officers identified themselves and ordered the suspect to lie down on the ground, at which point Lapinski allegedly pulled a knife out of his waistband.
Officers responded by drawing their duty weapons and issuing commands for the suspect to drop his weapon, CT Insider reported.
Although Lapinski complied and dropped the knife, he continued to be “combative” with officers and resisted their efforts to escort him to a waiting Hartford police car, the CSP said.
He also allegedly screamed obscenities during the ordeal.
Two of the officers involved in his arrest suffered minor injuries during the scuffle with Lapinski, WFSB reported.
Police said one of the injured officers happened to be the sergeant the suspect was accused of threatening to kill one day earlier.
Lapinski was booked into the Hartford Correctional Center on criminal attempt to commit first-degree assault, two counts of assault on a public safety officer, carrying a dangerous weapon, and interfering with an officer, CT Insider reported.
He was later hit with additional charges of disobeying the signal of an officer/attempting to elude or escape an officer, reckless driving, first-degree reckless endangerment, and second-degree threatening, plus all of his outstanding warrants.
Lapinski is scheduled to appear in all of his pending cases on May 10, CT Insider reported.
