NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) _ An East Haven man has accepted a plea deal that will put him in prison for 14 years for a kidnapping earlier this year.

The New Haven Register reports (http://bit.ly/YtwoMd ) that Albert Leclaire told New Haven Superior Court Judge Patrick Clifford on Wednesday that he felt badly about the May kidnapping and robbing.

The 44-year-old Leclaire pleaded guilty to second-degree kidnapping and first-degree robbery under the Alford doctrine, meaning he did not accept all the allegations but conceded there is enough evidence to likely convict him. Had he been convicted after a trial, he could have been sentenced to up to 40 years.

Prosecutors say Leclaire approached a woman’s car claiming his car had broken down. He entered her car saying he had a gun.

Five hours later, she texted her boyfriend who contacted police.
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Information from: New Haven Register, http://www.nhregister.com

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