The Orange County town of Bradford continues to struggle with public behaviors and crimes reportedly committed by a growing number of homeless residents who have settled in town.
Bradford Police Department today reported that a second homeless man was taken into custody yesterday in connection with the recent burglaries of the Vittles coffee trailer, the Bradford Golf Club, and a camp in Fairlee.
Isaiah Taylor, 26, a transient, was arrested for burglary, grand larceny and other related charges. Eugene Kilchewski, 46, who was arrested on Monday was arraigned yesterday and remains in custody, according to BPD and as reported by VDC.
BPD states stolen property from all three crimes was recovered by police.
Taylor was arrested after he was located at 64 South Pleasant Street. That is the same downtown home that was the site of an alleged stabbing last week.
At 6 AM on August 24, Travis Guyette, 33, and Christopher Kirk, 48 became engaged in a physical altercation that resulted in Kirk being stabbed with a knife. Kirk was transported to CVMC where he was treated for his injuries and released. Later in the evening when Troopers went to the residence to speak with Guyette and effect an arrest, he physically resisted. He was charged with aggravated assault and resisting arrest, police say.
Bradford city leaders have been meeting for weeks about the growing violent and property crime, much although not necessarily all of it feared to be stemming from an influx of transients.
“It happens every year, but not like this,” a public official said in the August 2 Journal-Opinion, of the growing crime, nuisance behavior, and appearance of bodily fluids like blood, feces and vomit in public places. The public library, with its free wifi and water/toilet services, has been a particular area of concern. A citizen’s task force that formed to provide community solutions during Covid has been reprised to address this new problem.
Bradford isn’t the only small rural community coping with new levels of homelessness, of course. A federal report issued last December showed Vermont had the second highest rate of homelessness in the nation, next to California – an estimated 2,780 people.
Vandalism Tuesday night – The eastern Orange County town also saw a troubling vandalism incident last night, with no known connection (at present) to the transient influx.
Tuesday night, August 29 at about 10 pm, State Police were notified of a vandalism that occurred at “The Hub” Bradford Teen Center, located at 152 Main St, Bradford. Many witnesses saw a female break many windows and disrupt traffic. State Police are asking the public for assistance in identifying the female.
This story includes reporting from today’s online newsletter and recent print editions of the Journal-Opinion, the weekly community newspaper for Bradford and surrounding towns.