A Vermont city official, his wife and her son were found shot to death in their home over the weekend, state police said.
Police identified them Tuesday as Brian Crossman, 46, a Pawlet selectman; Erica Crossman, 41; and Colin Taft, 13. The town of about 1,400 people is near the New York state line.
They were found dead on Sunday, Vermont State Police said in a press release Tuesday evening. All three deaths were ruled homicides.
Police said their investigation was active and no arrests had been made. However, CBS affiliate WCAX reports According to sources, police have identified a person of interest who is a relative of the victims.
state police said Autopsies determined Brian Crossman’s cause of death was gunshot wounds to the head and torso, Erica Crossman died of a single gunshot wound to the head, and Colin Taft’s cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds.
Members of Pawlet’s select panel, which is elected by residents to oversee town spending and pass ordinances, held their regular meeting Tuesday night. Crossman’s place was free and there were flowers at his place at the table.
Mike Beecher, chairman of the five-member board, read a statement: “Brian Crossman was a friend and neighbor, a hard-working member of the community who just this year stepped up to join the Pawlet Selectboard.
“This tragedy that befell 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.”
Neighbors told WCAX that the shooting left them shaken.
“It’s very hard to understand. It just hasn’t sunk in. We just visited the family three nights before the death,” neighbor Oliver Ihasz told the station.
Brian and Erica Crossman were married in June of this year, Bennington Banner reported.