BENNINGTON — A Bennington man well known to local police and prosecutors was arrested this week on burglary and drug charges for the brazen break-in of an antiques shop on Main Street as the fireworks flew July 4th.
John Chinnici, 39, was arraigned Thursday afternoon from a holding facility in Rutland via video link on four felony counts — burglary, possessing stolen property, Fentanyl trafficking, and grand larceny. He pleaded not guilty to all four counts. Chinnici was charged with the enhanced habitual offender label on each count, meaning he faces a possible life sentence for each of the four felonies if he is found guilty. Vermont allows prosecutors to label someone a habitual offender if they have been found guilty of three felonies.
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Chinnici has a lengthy criminal history in Vermont, including guilty pleas to felony burglary in 2004 and several misdemeanors, including possession of stolen property and unlawful mischief charges. Chinnici was under conditions of release from two pending cases of possessing stolen property on two separate occasions when the alleged new charges occurred. Chinnici also has two federal felony convictions, one for a felon in possession of a firearm in 2004 and using a communication facility to facilitate distribution of Oxycodone in 2016.
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After a request from prosecutors, Superior Court Judge John Valente continued the hold without bail until a weight of evidence hearing could be scheduled. Chinnici is currently being held at the Marble Valley Regional Correctional Facility in Rutland until then.
According to an affidavit in the case, Bennington Police were called to 473 Main Street, Main Street Antiques, at approximately 9:55 PM on the Fourth of July this year for a report of a burglary. Officers arrived to find signs of a physical break-in, including several glass display cases smashed, and various items, including jewelry, precious metals, and graded coins missing. A hammer allegedly used in the burglary was located and taken as evidence.
In a written statement, a witness told police they heard two bangs and saw an individual in all black running out of the door and entering a small alley next to the antiques shop. About thirty seconds later, the individual returned and re-entered the shop. Another individual told police they saw a road bike pull up and park near the Bennington Library minutes before the burglary. The individual on the bike, dressed in all black, then puts on a mask and gloves, departing toward the shop soon after. That same witness saw that same individual with a small black bag hop back on the bike and take off.
Video footage from the library confirmed the individual on the bicycle taking out a hammer and a mask. While putting on the mask, the male was immediately identified as Chinnici by detectives investigating the case. Chinnici has a unique, identifying tattoo under his right eye. CCTV from inside the store shows Chinnici allegedly smashing the glass cases and dumping merchandise from their trays into the black bag.
Charles Suss, one of three partners at the antiques store, told police that approximately $30,000 worth of merchandise was missing, including several rare coins and various silver bars. Among the missing coins was a Liberty twenty-dollar gold coin from 1864 and a silver dollar dated 1795 worth over $7000. A 14k gold Derek Jeter World Series ring with the NY Yankees on the face in a wooden box and two trays of wedding bands were also taken.
Police stopped a 2008 Jeep Liberty on Park Street Tuesday morning for a red-light violation. Chinnici, identified by the police as the suspect in the burglary, was in the front passenger seat. As Chinnici was being searched after his arrest, a bag of wedding rings and gold necklaces with tags from Main Street Antiques still attached was allegedly found. Police also allegedly found $787.84 in cash and a three-gram bag of white powder on Chinnici. The powder was later identified as Fentanyl. A later search of Chinnici’s apartment found bags full of watches and numerous containers of sleeved baseball cards.
Charles Suss was later contacted and confirmed the information on the tags. Police estimate the tags on the jewelry alone added up to over $9,000.
Suss and the other partners at Main Street Antiques offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the case. According to Suss, that reward will be given out to the eyewitness in the case.
“God works in funny ways,” Suss told the Banner after Chinnici was arraigned. “For this guy to violate the trust I placed in the community by leaving this stuff on display is an insult to the community. Forget about me. I got ripped off, but now a deserving person who needs that money will get that reward. The benefit to the community is that this guy is now behind bars and a poor person will come into a nice chunk of cash.”
Suss, who did not have insurance on his merchandise, is unsure if and how much of the stolen inventory he might recover.
“Am I disappointed? Of course I am,” Suss said. “It feels like we had a wolf running in the dog pack. The wolf puts himself above it all and feels he can rape and plunder at will just because he feels like it.”
When asked what he might say to Chinnici if given the opportunity, Suss didn’t mince words in his answer.
“Where are the coins? I want them back.”
After the hearing, as the judge left the bench and the lawyers cleared out of the courtroom, Chinnici, wearing a red prison jumpsuit and still sitting in a chair at the holding facility, did not move. He seemed to stare at the video screen in front of him. Only one other individual, a family member, remained on the video feed, who appeared via video to support him. Chinnici looked up at the camera, which was still running. He blew a kiss toward the screen and mouthed the words. “I’m sorry.” The feed from the correctional facility almost immediately went black. The family member bowed her head. Then, she clicked off.