By Tiffany Williams –
On Tuesday, Frankie Montes-Rivera, 52, of New Haven, Connecticut was sentenced in Superior Court in Middletown, Connecticut to 25 years in prison, execution suspended after 10 years to serve, and five years of probation.
On September 26, 2023, Montes-Rivera had pleaded guilty to Robbery in the Third Degree, Robbery in the First Degree, Assault on a Police Officer and Interfering with a Police Officer.
Montes-Rivera also admitted violating a previously imposed term of probation.
On October 12, 2021, Montes-Rivera forcibly stole a car at a Citgo Gas Station on Chapel Street in New Haven. Later, after abandoning the car, he walked onto I-95 during rush hour traffic, where he entered and pushed the driver out of a tractor trailer and then attempted to drive away, striking several other vehicles in the process. The tractor trailer then crashed into a guardrail.
When a Connecticut State Police Trooper arrived on the scene, they observed several people behind a vehicle that Montes-Rivera was attempting to put in reverse. The Trooper deployed his Taser, striking Montes-Rivera in the leg.
Montes-Rivera fell out of the truck where an Inspector from the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, who was on the highway and responded to assist the Trooper, attempted to take Montes-Rivera into custody.
During a struggle with the Inspector, Montes-Rivera reached for the Inspector’s gun, breaking the holster from the Inspector’s belt in the process. The Inspector, with the assistance of the Trooper, eventually was able to take Montes-Rivera into custody.
The Inspector suffered injuries during the incident.