Cops are trying to unravel the bizarre triple slaying of a politician, his wife and their son in bucolic rural Vermont.
According to cops, the trio were shot to death in their home over the weekend.
The dead have been identified as Brian Crossman Sr., 46, his wife, Erica Crossman, née Pawlusiak, 41, and Colin Taft, 13, who is Erica’s son and Brian’s stepson.
“That house is like my great grandfather(s), so everybody congregated there,” one neighbour told the Bennington Banner. “There were five brothers, so it’s a big family.”
Brian Crossman had recently taken over the family’s farm on the property where he was murdered. The farm had been in the family for generations.
“He was cleaning it up and working the farm,” the neighbour added. “I think he was just trying to make a new start and trying to run the family farm. And, yeah, this just is, like, the last thing I expected.”
Earlier this year, Crossman was elected to the select board in Pawlet in Rutland County, about 136 km south of Burlington.
Vermont State Police initially called the slayings “suspicious deaths” but are calling it a homicidal incident.
According to cops, police received a call about a “suspicious person” Sunday around 3:45 a.m. Subsequent investigation led officers to a residence where they discovered the victims.
State Troopers would only say at the time that the deaths were “suspicious.”
The medical examiner said late Tuesday that Brian Crossman died from a slew of gunshot wounds to his head and torso; Erica Crossman died from a single gunshot wound to her head; Colin died from “multiple gunshot wounds.”
As for the suspicious person, investigators have not identified — or charged — the man. However, cops said there is no threat to public safety.
“There was a report of a person that had some blood on them,” Vermont State Police Maj. Dan Trudeau told WCAX. “That they saw on the roadway.”
He added a second phone call — and the blood-soaked individual — led troopers to the crime scene. Neighbours said the “person of interest” was waiting for troopers at a nearby elementary school.
“We ended up detaining this person,” Trudeau said. “Described getting to the house, and finding deceased bodies inside.”
The chairperson of the Pawlet Selectboard hailed Crossman’s commitment to public service.
“Brian Crossman was a friend and neighbour, a hardworking community member who just this year stepped up to join the Pawlet Selectboard,” Mike Beecher told New England Cable News.
“This tragedy that struck him and his family has also hit our community hard, and we are shaken and grieving. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by this devastating loss.”
The investigation is continuing.
@HunterTOSun