Found Deceased VT - Roberta Martin, 82, neigh went to check on her and didn't find her at home, suspicious, Enosburgh, Franklin County, 16 Jul 2024 *arrest*

DNA Solves
DNA Solves
DNA Solves

July 22, 2024​

Update No. 5: Police locate human remains during search for missing Enosburgh woman​

STATE OF VERMONT
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
VERMONT STATE POLICE

CASE#: 24A2004920
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Detective Sgt. Isaac Merriam
STATION: St. Albans Barracks
CONTACT#: 802-524-5993

DATE/TIME: 11:55 a.m. Wednesday, July 17, 2024
INCIDENT LOCATION: Butternut Hollow Road, Enosburgh, VT

VICTIM: Roberta Martin
AGE: 82
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Enosburgh, VT

SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:

On July 22, 2024, an autopsy of the human remains recovered on Sunday (7/21/24) was performed at the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington. The remains were identified as Roberta Martin, 82, of Enosburgh. The cause and manner of death are pending at this time.

On July 22, 2024, at approximately 12:00 PM, state police detectives were attempting to locate Darren Martell, 23, in St. Albans. Martell was one of several people being interviewed for the investigation involving Roberta Martin’s death. Detectives first observed Martell in a wooded area near the St. Albans Town School. As detectives approached Martell they observed him masturbating along the edge of a public walking path. When Martell observed detectives walking toward him, he ran into the woods. Additional detectives, uniform troopers and St. Albans Police Department Officers responded to the area of the school in order to search for Martell. The St. Albans Town School went into “lock down” as law enforcement searched the area around the school. Martell was located a short time later and brought to the St. Albans Barracks. This arrest and charge is unrelated to the Roberta Martin investigation. Please refer to the press release of Martell’s arrest for more details.

The investigation into Roberta’s death is on-going.

No further details are available at this time. VSP will continue to provide updates to the public throughout this investigation.
 
I think it's been blurred for awhile, not just since this case. When the thread first started, I looked up the addresses and it was already blurred then. That would seem super fast response to this incident so my guess is it has been blurred since before Roberta's murder. ??

jmopinion

Yes.... sometimes I have just found things blurred on the driving "google lens"...
I think it is just part and parcel to all the videoing they do.
 
Numerous, numerous posts have had to be removed.

When an individual is arrested in another matter and is NOT an official POI/suspect in the case under discussion, they are NOT sleuthable.

It may well turn out that LE will tie Martell into Roberta's case at some point, but we aren't there yet. Do not sleuth him further at this time.
 
A few random thoughts:

I still wonder if she tried to run to a neighbor for help. There is a house across from her intersection and a cluster of houses near her on Sand Hill Rd. towards the campground. Plus with the campground and ATV trails, maybe she hoped people would be out and about, even late at night. She has a few close houses near her in the opposite direction on her road, but she might not have had a choice about which direction she ran. We can't assume that being 82 means she wouldn't be able to run far. There are ultrarunners in their 70s and 80s. People around here run, ski, hike and bike well into their 80s and sometimes 90s. Until a family member says she wouldn't be able to run for help, I'm keeping this as a possibility. It would have been easy for the killer(s) to go 5 minutes away and put her body where it wouldn't be found, and while it's true that maybe they weren't thinking clearly, next to the campground pretty much guaranteed she'd be found.

ATVs: Practically everyone in Northern VT owns one or more. I'm not kidding! You hear them all hours of the day and night, even if you don't live near ATV trails like she did. No one would notice the sounds of an ATV driving around in the middle of the night.

The campground: they have tent spots, but rely on seasonal campers. Locals keeping their seasonal camper at Brookside year after year is common (same with the many campgrounds around VT). It's a beautiful spot. Friends of ours had their wedding at Brookside years ago. Since it's popular with locals, there is more traffic in and out than many campgrounds might have. Family and friends of campers stop by to visit all the time. The ATV trails make it especially popular for folks to visit people staying there.

Butternut Hollow Road: For a dirt back road, it has a lot of houses. Many more than my road. The map posted by someone earlier is deceiving. She was not living in an isolated spot without neighbors. The back roads around here wind through hills and hollows with breathtaking scenery. I hadn’t driven Butternut Hollow in a long time, so I wandered over there yesterday afternoon. It makes me so sad that her last moments in this beautiful place she called home were likely terrifying.
 
A few random thoughts:

I still wonder if she tried to run to a neighbor for help. There is a house across from her intersection and a cluster of houses near her on Sand Hill Rd. towards the campground. Plus with the campground and ATV trails, maybe she hoped people would be out and about, even late at night. She has a few close houses near her in the opposite direction on her road, but she might not have had a choice about which direction she ran. We can't assume that being 82 means she wouldn't be able to run far. There are ultrarunners in their 70s and 80s. People around here run, ski, hike and bike well into their 80s and sometimes 90s. Until a family member says she wouldn't be able to run for help, I'm keeping this as a possibility. It would have been easy for the killer(s) to go 5 minutes away and put her body where it wouldn't be found, and while it's true that maybe they weren't thinking clearly, next to the campground pretty much guaranteed she'd be found.

ATVs: Practically everyone in Northern VT owns one or more. I'm not kidding! You hear them all hours of the day and night, even if you don't live near ATV trails like she did. No one would notice the sounds of an ATV driving around in the middle of the night.

The campground: they have tent spots, but rely on seasonal campers. Locals keeping their seasonal camper at Brookside year after year is common (same with the many campgrounds around VT). It's a beautiful spot. Friends of ours had their wedding at Brookside years ago. Since it's popular with locals, there is more traffic in and out than many campgrounds might have. Family and friends of campers stop by to visit all the time. The ATV trails make it especially popular for folks to visit people staying there.

Butternut Hollow Road: For a dirt back road, it has a lot of houses. Many more than my road. The map posted by someone earlier is deceiving. She was not living in an isolated spot without neighbors. The back roads around here wind through hills and hollows with breathtaking scenery. I hadn’t driven Butternut Hollow in a long time, so I wandered over there yesterday afternoon. It makes me so sad that her last moments in this beautiful place she called home were likely terrifying.
Thanks for your thoughts and local insights. It helps to have an understanding of the area.
 
A few random thoughts:

I still wonder if she tried to run to a neighbor for help. There is a house across from her intersection and a cluster of houses near her on Sand Hill Rd. towards the campground. Plus with the campground and ATV trails, maybe she hoped people would be out and about, even late at night. She has a few close houses near her in the opposite direction on her road, but she might not have had a choice about which direction she ran. We can't assume that being 82 means she wouldn't be able to run far. There are ultrarunners in their 70s and 80s. People around here run, ski, hike and bike well into their 80s and sometimes 90s. Until a family member says she wouldn't be able to run for help, I'm keeping this as a possibility. It would have been easy for the killer(s) to go 5 minutes away and put her body where it wouldn't be found, and while it's true that maybe they weren't thinking clearly, next to the campground pretty much guaranteed she'd be found.

ATVs: Practically everyone in Northern VT owns one or more. I'm not kidding! You hear them all hours of the day and night, even if you don't live near ATV trails like she did. No one would notice the sounds of an ATV driving around in the middle of the night.

The campground: they have tent spots, but rely on seasonal campers. Locals keeping their seasonal camper at Brookside year after year is common (same with the many campgrounds around VT). It's a beautiful spot. Friends of ours had their wedding at Brookside years ago. Since it's popular with locals, there is more traffic in and out than many campgrounds might have. Family and friends of campers stop by to visit all the time. The ATV trails make it especially popular for folks to visit people staying there.

Butternut Hollow Road: For a dirt back road, it has a lot of houses. Many more than my road. The map posted by someone earlier is deceiving. She was not living in an isolated spot without neighbors. The back roads around here wind through hills and hollows with breathtaking scenery. I hadn’t driven Butternut Hollow in a long time, so I wandered over there yesterday afternoon. It makes me so sad that her last moments in this beautiful place she called home were likely terrifying.
I think it's worth considering she might have left the house in an attempt to escape or summon help. I hadn't thought of that before.

Right now, I'm just waiting for more news. I'm most curious to learn if the expected perp and Roberta knew each other. Info will eventually come out.

jmo
 
I think it's worth considering she might have left the house in an attempt to escape or summon help. I hadn't thought of that before.

Right now, I'm just waiting for more news. I'm most curious to learn if the expected perp and Roberta knew each other. Info will eventually come out.

jmo

I do hope we get clarity as well. I have seen confusing information about the possible close location of the perp to Roberta's house.... but I do not think it has been made crystal clear.
moo

Just so hard to accept how this wonderful woman spent her last moments...
just sickening and saddening.
moo
 

Darren Martell of St. Albans is being charged with aggravated murder.

Police say Darren Martell had been living with the residents of a house next door to Martin's home on Butternut Hollow Road.

Martell is currently being held without bail and will be arraigned at 1:30 PM on Friday at Vermont Superior Court in St. Albans on the aggravated murder charge.

He could face a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.


 
We suspected from the beginning of the investigation that the police was very interested in the residents of the neighboring house since this house had been searched. We also knew that DM was a suspect otherwise the police would not have pursued him in Saint-Albans. But we didn't know that DM was one of the occupants of the neighboring house.
 
We suspected from the beginning of the investigation that the police was very interested in the residents of the neighboring house since this house had been searched. We also knew that DM was a suspect otherwise the police would not have pursued him in Saint-Albans. But we didn't know that DM was one of the occupants of the neighboring house.

There were hints... probably from various FB comments....
I got the sense that lots of locals knew EXACTLY what went down....
moo
 

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