By Michael Bielawski,
For two crimes over the past week, police are still looking for the suspects. This includes a man involved in an armed car theft attempt and another man connected with two sexual assaults.
Also, two Vermont police were celebrated at a Boston Celtic’s game for their critical role in saving a young skier and two murder suspects are in custody.
Armed car theft attempt
Police are looking for a man who pointed a gun at two women and broke into a car in Troy on Tuesday evening.
Around 8 p.m. that evening, police got a call about a break-in to an automobile. After an investigation, police learned that the man pointed a gun at two women after they tried to confront him.
The man fled the scene wearing a zip-up sweatshirt, dark jeans, and a baseball cap. There is a photo of the man in this WCAX report.
Man wanted for alleged sexual assault
Vermont State Police are also asking for help finding a man being charged with two alleged sexual assaults.
They are looking for 56-year-old James Gathright Jr. who is connected to two sexual assault investigations from September 2023. He is facing charges for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman on Northside Drive in Bennington as well as another incident involving a juvenile days later on a rail trail.
He is from the Rutland and Bennington area and is described as 5 feet, 8 inches tall, weighs about 170 pounds, is bald, has brown eyes, and is African American. The last sightings of him were in Bennington around November. There is a photo of the man on this WPTZ report.
Vermont man charged with murder
In July of last year, just months after becoming an officer, Jessica Ebbighausen was killed in a car crash. She was just 19 years old. Now the man in the other car is being charged with second-degree murder.
The incident occurred in Rutland in July of last year. Initially, Tate Rheaume, 20, was released on a $100,000 bond and was only charged with grossly negligent operation with death resulting and eluding police. Police say Rheaume was fleeing when his pickup truck struck Ebbighausen’s cruiser in a head-on collision.
New Yorker wanted for murder found in Vermont
On Monday it was announced by State Police that a 16-year-old fugitive from New York City wanted for murder was hiding on Howard Road in Enosburg, Vermont. He was picked up last Friday.
“Investigation led law enforcement to believe he was hiding at a residence on Howard Road in Enosburg, and additional units from Vermont State Police Special Operations Unit, Vermont Fish and Wildlife, and the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office responded to assist,” the report states.
He is also being charged as a fugitive from justice for fleeing to Vermont.
Officers honored at Celtics game
Two Fall River police officers were honored by the Boston Celtics at their game last Sunday after they saved a man’s life during a ski trip together. The two officers Garrett Nelson and Guy Furtado received a standing ovation as they stood on the court.
In January the two officers were off-duty and on a ski trip together at Okemo Mountain Resort in Ludlow. On their way down they ran into William Polzun Jr. whose son Nathan Polzun had collapsed.
The officers realized that Nathan wasn't breathing and did not have a pulse. Nelson called 911 and contacted a rescue team at the resort. The two men together did CPR until more help arrived.
Because of their fast actions, a rescue helicopter was able to get the man’s son to a health center where they were ultimately able to revive him. He is still recovering but was already able to visit the officers who saved his life.
A Herald News report has a photo of the event, which was part of the Celtics’ Heroes Among Us program.
The author is a writer for the Vermont Daily Chronicle