On a September morning in New Britain, Connecticut, the life of 25-year-old Dante Malcom Sprouse, a Black / African American male, was cut short in a burst of violence that shattered the quiet of a residential neighborhood. The tragic events of September 12, 2024, began to unfold around 8:50 a.m. when police received a report of a possible burglary in the vicinity of Kelsey and Whitman streets.
As officers were en route, the situation escalated with further reports of a car crash and a disturbance in the same area.
Upon their arrival, police were met with a chaotic scene. It is believed that an altercation followed the crash, and in the midst of this confrontation, shots were fired. Officers discovered Sprouse suffering from a gunshot wound. He was rushed to a local hospital, but his injuries proved to be fatal, and he was pronounced dead. The incident prompted a shelter-in-place order for the nearby Smith School as a precautionary measure while law enforcement secured the area and began their investigation.
In the weeks and months that followed, the New Britain Police Department's Criminal Investigations Division worked to piece together the events that led to Sprouse's death. Their investigation led to the identification of three suspects. Two men, 18-year-old Jayden Hayes of Bristol and 22-year-old Angel Del Rio Clemente of New Britain, were taken into custody and charged with felony murder.
As the investigation continued, a third individual was implicated in the events preceding the homicide. William Rodriguez, a 29-year-old from Hartford, was arrested and charged with first-degree burglary for his alleged involvement in the initial incident that drew police to the Kelsey Street neighborhood. The New Britain Police Department has announced that with these three arrests, all suspects connected to the death of Dante Sprouse are in custody.
