POLICE: 17-YEAR-OLD MAN ARRESTED FOR POSSESSING EXPLOSIVE DEVICES IN ST. ALBANS
Editor’s Note: This story was updated Monday evening with additional information provided by acting Police Chief Maurice Lamothe.
ST. ALBANS TOWN: A heavy law enforcement presence could be seen by drivers passing by 53 Swanton Road Monday afternoon, as members of the Vermont State Police Bomb Squad, and five other public safety agencies joined forces with the St. Albans Police Department to serve a warrant at an address thought to be linked to an ongoing investigation related to explosives in the area.
According to acting Police Chief Maurice Lamothe, officers converged on the address around 2:30 pm and were still on the scene hours later.
Lamothe did not release the name of the 17-year old male suspect they took into custody in connection with the search, citing legal statutes that protect the names of juveniles. The suspect is expected to be arraigned in Franklin County court Tuesday, at which point the court will decide if he will be charged as an adult or in the Family Court system.
With the help of St. Albans Town and St. Albans City Fire Departments, the Federal Bureau of Investigations, Customs and Border Protection, and ATF, officers carried out the warrant, gathering explosive evidence from the home, according to Lamothe.
Lamothe did not elaborate on what kind of explosives were seized as evidence, but did say that the explosives taken as evidence are being sent to the FBI lab in Quantico, Virginia for analysis.
The St. Albans City Police had been investigating two incidents where explosives had been found at the Hard’ack recreation area. Lamothe said it is not clear if the suspect taken into custody on Monday had anything to do with the Hard’ack explosives, but noted that sending the evidence to the FBI lab will help to determine that.
According to Lamothe, Monday’s suspect was not a result of investigation related to the Hard’ack explosives but came through other channels. He would not elaborate further on how police first became involved with this case.
