DNA left on gear shifter leads to CT man’s arrest in connection with car theft

A Hartford man faces a larceny charge after investigators were able to use DNA to tie him to a car stolen in South Windsor in 2021.

Jensen Rodriguez, 22, was charged Wednesday with one count of third-degree larceny, according to Sgt. Mark Cleverdon of the South Windsor Police Department.

The charge stems from a car theft reported at a South Windsor residence in March 2021, Cleverdon said in a news release.

“Rodriguez was identified as a result of DNA evidence left on the gear shifter of the vehicle,” Cleverdon said.

Rodriguez was taken into custody at the Cheshire Correctional Institute and was held on $10,000 bond pending an arraignment hearing Thursday in Manchester Superior Court.