Barton

BARTON — An East Haven man is facing a slew of charges following an incident at the Lakehouse Saloon in Barton early this morning.

Police say 51-year-old Benjamin Clarke is being charged with aggravated assault on law enforcement, disarming law enforcement officer, impeding public officer, criminal threatening, aggravated assault, unlawful mischief, aggravated disorderly conduct, unlawful trespass, and resisting arrest.

According to police, Clarke entered the bar around midnight and was asked to leave by the bouncers.

Police say he refused and began throwing pool balls at patrons inside the bar, striking one man in the face with them.

He was taken outside by the bouncers where he produced a knife and began threatening them and the other patrons at the bar.

According to the report, Clarke stated several times he was going to blow up the towns of Barton and St. Johnsbury.

He then crawled across the parking lot and slashed a woman’s tire.

Shortly after slashing the tire, police arrived on the scene.

The bouncers told police that they believed Clarke had taken several doses of LSD or PCP.

Police say Clarke began to attack them on the scene by punching a trooper in the head, attempting to disarm the trooper, and threatening to kill them.

Clarke was ultimately taken into custody and transported to North Country Hospital for treatment and evaluation.

He was remanded to the custody of Vermont Corrections however remained at North Country Hospital for evaluation.

He was held on lack of $75,000.00 bail.

BARTON — A 31-year-old man from Quebec has been charged with excessive speed after being clocked traveling 111 miles-per-hour on I-91, police said.

Police say they were patrolling northbound traffic on Interstate 91 in the town of Barton on Tuesday when they observed a vehicle traveling at a high rate of speed.

The vehicle speed was captured by stationary radar at 111 mph.

Police stopped the vehicle for the speed violation and the operator was identified as Michael Mercurio, of L’ile Bizard, Quebec.

Mercurio was cited into Orleans County Court and released.

BARTON — A 52-year-old woman from Barton on furlough for manslaughter charges connected to a 2009 crash that killed her husband, was arrested for domestic assault.

Police say Christine Billis was involved in a physical altercation on Main Street in Barton on Friday.

According to the report, Billis and the victim had been in a relationship for several months.

“After speaking with several witnesses it was determined a criminal offense had occurred,” trooper Abigail Drew wrote in a statement.

Billis was arrested and taken to Northern State Correctional Facility for revocation of her furlough.

Back in September of 2009, Billis was driving with her husband Charles in Charleston, when her car suddenly swerved into a tree.

She was treated for minor injuries, but her husband was badly injured and pronounced dead at the hospital.

Less than a year later, Billis registered with an online dating service and allegedly confessed to a man she was corresponding with that the car crash was deliberate.

She allegedly told the man that her husband was not wearing his seatbelt and that she had slammed the car deliberately into the tree.

The man wore a recording device at their first face-to-face meeting, and Billis repeated her confession.

The man took the tape to police who began their own investigation. Police say they obtained confirming confessions at subsequent meetings on police wires.

In June 2011, she was arrested for first-degree murder in the killing of her husband.

She was sentenced to serve 7-15 years behind bars.

Her minimum sentence to serve ended in June of last year.

NEWPORT — Police say a 29-year-old man from Barton was arrested in Newport with 60 bags of heroin inside his vehicle.

According to police, Jordan Medley is currently facing charges of possession of heroin and violation of conditions of release.

At around 1:00 p.m. on May 16, police say they stopped Medley on Central Street for a number of motor vehicle violations.

At the time, Medley was taken into custody as a result of an ongoing investigation by the Newport Police Department.

According to the report, police located 60 bags of heroin in the truck.

Medley is currently on several active pre-trial conditions of release and was found to be in violation of three of those conditions.

He was lodged at the Northern State Correctional Facility in Newport.

BARTON — Police are investigating the theft of brush and Christmas trees from a tree farm in Barton, and the owner is offering a $1,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.

The owner of the farm told police that an unknown individual or individuals had gained access to his property on Fulton Lane through a locked gate by cutting the lock, sometime around November 23.

“The toughest part of the whole thing is that most people don’t know how much time and effort it takes to grow a Christmas tree,” owner Greg Dowd said. “Trees only grow about one foot a year, so it takes seven to ten years to have a nice seven or eight-foot tree. And that’s if everything goes well.”

Dowd says those responsible stole several thousand dollars worth of Christmas trees and brush from his property, as well as a game camera which he was using for security purposes.

He is offering the $1,000 reward to help find out who did this.

Police say the investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to please the Sheriff’s Department at 802-334-3333.

“It’s very discouraging when something like this happens,” Dowd added.

NEWPORT — A 37-year-old woman from Barton will have to answer to charges after police say she failed to pull over during a traffic stop in Newport.

At around 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, the Orleans County Sheriff’s Department attempted to stop a dark-colored sedan.

The driver was identified as Sherllynn Cote.

Police allege Cote accelerated rapidly and failed to stop at the intersection of 191 and Western Avenue In Newport.

The vehicle turned onto Clyde Street where it lost control and struck a snowbank.

Newport Police assisted the Sheriff’s Department when conducting the stop.

The occupants of the vehicle were detained while the investigation was completed.

Cote was issued a citation in Orleans Superior Court for a later date. 

BARTON — Police are investigating a suspicious incident that occurred today in Barton, in which a juvenile was approached by an adult male.

The incident took place on Route 16 in Barton, near Roaring Brook Road.

Police say a 16-year-old juvenile male reported he was walking to work at around 10:00 a.m. when he was passed by a maroon colored Chrysler Sebring convertible with Vermont plates.

The driver sounded his horn and then drove by again, this time stopping, rolling down his window and asking if the juvenile needed a ride.

The juvenile declined, and the male exited the vehicle, opened the passenger door, and grabbed the juvenile forcefully by both his arms, asking again if he wanted a ride.

The juvenile was able to break free and run to his place of employment.

Police say the person of interest was last seen traveling south on Route 16, towards the I-91 on-ramps.

The man was described as being a white male in his late 50s or early 60s, with salt and pepper hair, thin in build and approximately 5’09”, wearing blue jeans, eyeglasses and a long-sleeved shirt.

This incident took place after a similar incident was reported yesterday in Newport.

Anyone who may have witnessed this incident, the vehicle or person of interest, or who may have information regarding the individual’s identity is asked to contact police at 802-334-8881.

BARTON — An incident in Barton closed down a section of Vermont Route 16 and Roaring Brooke Road late this morning, leaving a 38-year-old man facing charges.

Police say Anthony Sirois of Barton is being charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, and assault of a law enforcement officer.

The incident started at around 11:20 a.m. when 911 calls started coming in of a man with a handgun walking in the area of Roaring Brook Road.

When troopers arrived, the man was identified as Sirois.

Police say they encountered him at the intersection of Roaring Brook and Vermont Route 16, along with a female companion.

Due to the nature of the complaint, Sirois was taken into custody, when police say he exhibited “profane, disorderly and tumultuous behavior, resulting in his arrest for disorderly conduct.”

During his arrest and attempts to secure him in the patrol car, he allegedly resisted and became assaultive towards the arresting troopers, striking them.

Sirois was ultimately secured but police say both he and the arresting troopers sustained minor injuries.

The incident caused the intersection of the two roads to be closed for a brief period.

According to the report, no firearm was located on any person or in the area, and police say there is no further evidence there is one outstanding at this time.

BARTON — Police say they arrested a man who fled into the woods after a traffic stop on I-91 early this morning in Barton.

At around 12:43 a.m., a state police trooper attempted to stop a vehicle illegally entering a U-turn near mile marker 161.

According to police, as the vehicle stopped the driver fled on foot to the nearby woods.

The driver was later identified as Syman Belmore, 42, of Lowell. He was apprehended in the woods with the assistance of a K-9 unit.

Syman was transported to Derby where he was charged and processed for DUI and attempting to elude.

He was released on a citation to appear in court in September to answer the charges.

NEWPORT — Individuals and families, young and old alike took on the Harry Corrow Freedom Run yesterday.

This was the second year the course was run exclusively on the gravel portion of the Newport-Derby Bike Path with 3.5 miles of trails in the Memphremagog Ski Touring Foundation system.

Cole Alexander, 14, of Glover, was back from last year breaking his own record in the 5km with a time of 19 minutes and 10 seconds, beating out his older brother by a minute.

Lincoln Racine, 11, from Barton, won the 10km among the males with a time of 56.30.

Brooke Whitworth, 36, of Newport, set the female course record in the 10-mile distance, with a time of 1.25.13.

Hannah Cornelius, 33, of Newport, set a female course record in the 10km with a time of 49 min and 43 sec.

The star of the day was reservist Anna B. Clark, 26, of Rhinebeck, NY, presently stationed in St. Albans, who ran the entire 10-mile course under a heavy sun in her Army fatigues and carrying a “Don’t Tread on Me” flag.

She finished in 1.58.40. She was joined by fellow reservist Tom Graham, 58 of Bocsawen, NH who finished just behind her.

Several families were out in force, including the Campbell family of Waban, Mass, who took part in the 5km, and the Briggs family of Wooster, Ohio, who doubled their numbers from last year in the 1-mile distance.

Organizers say 2- percent of this year’s registration fees were donated to support the Memphremagog Ski Touring Foundation.

BARTON — A Barton man who complained about frequent false alarms from a smoke detector near his kitchen, took it upon himself to relocate it with two shotgun blasts.

Leroy Mason, 68, is being charged with aggravated assault with a weapon, and reckless endangerment following the incident on Monday evening.

At around 5:00 p.m. police responded to a report of a situation in Barton involving the use of a firearm at a fire scene at 327 Main Street.

Police say Mason had fired a 20-gauge shotgun twice inside his apartment at his fire alarm, striking an adjoining wall to an occupied neighboring apartment.

Mason has complained in the past about frequent false alarms with the smoke detector and was upset that fire crews would not “relocate” the detector, police say.

Mason took it upon himself to relocate the device.

Mason rearmed himself with a Colt 45 handgun and went outside, actively pointing the pistol at first responders and demanding the return of his shotgun, police say.

There was a brief standoff between Mason and first responders before he was tackled and disarmed.

No injuries were reported during the incident.

Police say the shotgun had three unfired rounds left in the magazine, and one spent cartridge in the chamber.

A second spent cartridge was located on scene.

The pistol had a loaded magazine with seven rounds, but the chamber did not contain a bullet.

Mason was arrested on suspicion of felony aggravated assault with a weapon and misdemeanor reckless endangerment.

Judge Robert Bent ordered Mason jailed without bail pending his release to a court-approved adult supervisor.

He is scheduled to be arraigned at today at 1 p.m.

BARTON — Police say someone robbed the Circle K in Barton early this morning.

At around 3:00 a.m. police responded to the gas station on Main Street for the report of an attempted armed robbery.

During the investigation, it was determined that an unknown white male entered the store brandishing a handgun, and demanded money from a store clerk.

The clerk, 52-year-old Lester Bousquet of West Burke, did not turn over any money and chased the robber from the store.

Police say no injuries were reported.

The suspect fled the scene in a grey Dodge Ram truck.

The investigation is ongoing at this time, and anyone with information is asked to contact police.

BARTON — Police say they have made an arrest after a burglary that took place at a residence on Hollow Road in Barton, on December 22.

Timothy Roberts, 38, of Barton, was arrested on Thursday after police say they received a tip that a man, matching the description from the burglary, had been seen walking house to house on Lake Region Road.

Troopers responded to the area and spoke with the man, later identified as Roberts, and say he was wearing some of the clothing that appeared to match the clothing in the burglary.

Further investigation revealed Roberts was in possession of the army jacket seen in the surveillance footage.

Roberts was arrested and transported to Derby for processing. He was lodged at Northern State Correctional Facility on $15,000 bail.

This morning, the Vermont State Police say they conducted a search warrant at Roberts home at 390 Lake Region Road.

They say the search warrant resulted in finding the Carhartt hat and black mask used in the burglary.

BARTON — Police are looking for a suspect who broke into a home in Barton last week.

At around 2:50 p.m. on Wednesday, police say they received a report of a burglary at a residence on Hollow Road. A trooper responded to the scene and met with the homeowner.

Police say the investigation revealed that on December 22, at approximately 10:25 a.m., an unidentified male entered the residence through the locked slider door in the back of the home.

Cash and change were taken during the break-in.

Video evidence captured one suspect, who appears to be a male, wearing an army camo winter jacket, brown pants, boots, a Carhartt winter hat and black winter gloves, entering the home.

The suspect was also wearing a full black face mask, hiding from the nose down.

Anyone with information regarding the identity of the suspect is asked to contact police at 802-334-8881.

BARTON — Governor Phil Scott and Agriculture Secretary Anson Tebbetts visited the Vermont Christmas Tree Farm in Barton today to highlight the importance of these businesses to the rural Vermont landscape and economy.

After touring the farm with owners Bill and Sue Tester, Governor Scott cut three trees, two for his offices in Montpelier and one to bring home.

The Governor and Secretary discussed with the Testers the challenge and benefits of having the tree farm on their Barton land.

In 2014, there were 71 tree growing operations in Vermont, 2,000 total acres in production, 119 thousand trees harvested, with an estimated value of approximately 2.9 million dollars.

“Cutting your own Christmas Tree is a wonderful Vermont tradition, and it supports our hard-working Vermont farmers who are helping to keep our hillsides green,” said Governor Phil Scott. “I’m happy to be able to decorate our office in Montpelier with an important symbol of Vermont agriculture.”

Like many Vermont tree growers, the Testers offer Balsam and Fraser Fir breeds on their farm. Vermont cut-your-own tree farms also grow hybrids, like the Tester’s signature “Fraslams” trees, and other breeds as well as provide trees to wholesale urban markets.

While Vermont trees are mainly consumed locally and in eastern urban markets, Vermont growers also ship trees to states as far away as Florida and California, and to a variety of foreign markets, including Bermuda.

Any property owner who grows Christmas trees can qualify for the Current Use program for productive lands, as long as the farm generates a minimum of $2000.00 annually in sales. Christmas trees are specifically included as an Agricultural use type in the program, like maple production.

“Vermont provides the perfect environment for growing high-value Christmas trees,” Tebbetts said. “Our sunny, cool and moist weather offers ideal growing conditions, assuring the quality of Vermont’s Christmas tree crop. Supporting agriculture activities that preserve our heritage and protect the landscape is a high priority for the Agency of Agriculture.”

BARTON — A crash in Barton on Monday morning caused a 2008 Nissan to strike the municipal building.

At around 9:42 a.m. police were called to investigate a two-vehicle accident on Village Square in the town of Barton.

Police say Cynthia Rice, 59 of Westmore, backed up into the path of another vehicle, operated by 75-year-old Patricia Davis of Barton, who was entering the parking lot to the municipal building.

Rice was driving a 2005 Ford F150.

After the collision, Davis’s vehicle continued traveling forward and struck the side of the municipal building.

Fire and EMS responded and found Davis had a minor leg injury, which was treated on scene.

Davis’s car was towed from the scene.

The building did not have any visible damage.

BARTON — Police are looking for two suspects caught on surveillance footage breaking into a home in Barton.

On Sunday at around 7:00 p.m. police responded to a report of a burglary with forced entry at the residence.

Police say two individuals entered the unoccupied dwelling in the early morning hours, causing damage and taking items from within.

According to police they have recovered multiple pieces of evidence from the scene, including images, and are currently working on identifying one male and one female suspect.

One suspect has been identified as a white male with longer than average dark hair, unshaved dark facial hair, and wearing a black hooded winter coat and a black winter hat with a small white emblem or tag.

The other suspect has been identified as a white female having lighter brown or dirty blond hair, slender build, fair skin, and wearing a black hooded winter coat and black winter hat with a large white emblem on the side.

The suspects wore blue nitrile exam gloves and both wore dark pants or jeans.

Anyone with information regarding the identity of the suspects is being asked to call VSP-Derby at (802) 334-8881.