A Vermont town official, his wife, and their kid were discovered shot to death in their home over the weekend, according to state police.
Police named them on Tuesday as Brian Crossman, 46, a Pawlet select board member; Erica Crossman, 41; and Colin Taft, 13. The town of approximately 1,400 people is located near the New York state boundary.
They were found deceased on Sunday, according to a news release issued Tuesday night by Vermont State Police. All three deaths were judged murders.
Police said the investigation was ongoing, and no one was in jail. However, CBS station WCAX reported that authorities have discovered a person of interest who is a victim’s relative.
Autopsies revealed that Brian Crossman died of gunshot wounds to the head and torso, Erica Crossman of a gunshot wound to the head, and Colin Taft of numerous gunshot wounds.
The Pawlet select board, elected by voters to supervise town expenditures and establish ordinances, met on Tuesday night as scheduled. Crossman’s seat was empty, and there were flowers on his place at the table.
Mike Beecher, chairperson of the five-member board, read a statement: “Brian Crossman was a friend and neighbor, a hardworking community member who only this year stepped up to join the Pawlet Selectboard.
“The catastrophe that struck him and his family has also had a significant impact on our town, leaving us frightened and in mourning. Our sympathies go out to everyone affected by this tragic tragedy.”
Neighbors told WCAX that the shooting had them scared.
“It’s really difficult to fathom. It’s just not sunk in. “We only visited the family three nights before the deaths,” next-door neighbor Oliver Ihasz told the channel.
The Bennington Banner reports that Brian and Erica Crossman married in June of this year.