Released earlier on conditions from state drug charges
By Michael Donoghue, Vermont News First
A Milton man, who authorities say allowed frequent customers to stop by his residence for drugs, is now facing a federal indictment for hosting a so-called “crack house,” records show.
Robert Tracy, 58. of 64 Cobble Hill Road was initially charged criminally in state court in February for both sale and possession of cocaine and also for illegal possession of a firearm after a violent crime conviction, records show.
Now this month, while free on conditions of release from state court, Tracy was arrested again – this time by federal agents — on a criminal complaint that he continued to allow his home to be used for the distribution and possession of cocaine, records show.
The limited conditions imposed in Vermont Superior Court in February did nothing to slow Tracy’s constant drug trafficking, federal court records show.
Now Federal Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle has ruled that Tracy needs to be detained pending trial in U.S. District Court. Doyle cited Tracy’s prior criminal record, the weight of the evidence and that the new charges stem from conduct while he was on release from another drug case. Doyle also noted Tracy lacks a stable residence and has a history of alcohol or substance abuse.
Milton Police said they have made about a dozen arrests for people leaving Tracy’s home since last fall.
The initial raid led by Milton Police in January netted officers crack cocaine, cash, firearms and drug paraphernalia, records show.
The search followed months of illicit drug activity at Tracy’s large property, which includes a light blue trailer and numerous vehicles, camper-trailers and some out buildings, court papers show.
When Tracy was released from state court he had minimal conditions and there were no requirements that the defendant refrain from using controlled substances or that he engage in drug treatment, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Jonathan Ophardt wrote in federal court papers.
Ophardt said “drug trafficking and drug use has continued unabated at defendant Tracy’s residence.”
When the federal raid was conducted this month it confirmed that the drug house was still in operation, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, which is working with Milton Police.
“Crack cocaine was located in what is believed to be defendant’s Tracy’s bedroom, and ammunition for a rifle was also located in that bedroom,” Ophardt wrote.
“Defendant Tracy admitted at his arrest that he continues to be a regular user of cocaine base, and that the residence has continued to be a drug-involved premises,” Ophardt said in his request to have Tracy detained pending his federal trial.
Tracy’s criminal history indicates that he has had a substance abuse problem involving cocaine at least back to 2019, records show. His convictions also includes a domestic assault, which blocks his lawful possession of a firearm, records show.
“Although his continued drug use does not constitute a violation of his state court release conditions, it has posed an ongoing safety risk for the community,” Ophardt wrote. The public needs protection ordered by the federal court.
He said releasing Tracy again “without a structured release plan involving residential substance abuse treatment would create an unacceptable risk of danger to the community stemming from likely continued drug use by Tracy and likely continued drug activity at his residence.”
A federal grand jury considered Tracy’s latest criminal case and returned the one-count indictment against him last week for unlawfully operating and maintaining the house as a drug distribution center for both crack cocaine and powder cocaine between October 2025 and June 5, 2026.
Milton Police have reported ongoing complaints about members of the general public stopping by Tracy’s home for 5 to 20 minute visits – the time frame often needed to complete a quick drug sale, officials said.
While the office of Chittenden County State’s Attorney Sarah George did not fight to keep Tracy behind bars, the ATF, along with Milton Police continued to monitor his behavior, federal court records show.
Milton Police Detective Trevor Sargent, who was hired last fall, became aware that multiple neighbors had “reported a high volume of traffic coming to and from the residence with short duration stops,” ATF Special Agent Sam Brown said in a 10-page federal court affidavit.
Sargent, the former head of the St. Albans City Police Street Crime Unit, connected with an informant in October 2025 that was willing to buy crack cocaine, court records show.
Multiple sales were undertaken in the following weeks and police conducted surveillance at the residence as more and more complaints from the public were incoming, Brown noted.
One neighbor reported a New York-registered Dodge Durango stopped at the trailer and shortly after leaving, a steady flow of short-duration visits by vehicles were reported, Sargent said.
A Mini Cooper stopped by so many times at Tracy’s home that a neighbor dubbed it a “pizza delivery driver,” Sargent said.
During the initial raid on January 2, five grams of crack cocaine, about one gram of suspected psilocybin, which comes from mushrooms, $431 in cash, a small digital scale, a Savage 7-mm rifle and a Remington 30-06 caliber rifle were found in Tracy’s bedroom, court records show. They said a Savage .222-caliber rifle was located in his living room.
Records show two known drug users with multiple drug involvements also were found at the Cobble Hill home, which is off Middle Road.
After the first drug raid, Milton Police conducted at least five traffic stops for people committing motor vehicle violations upon leaving 64 Cobble Hill Road, Brown said. Either the driver or a passenger were arrested on drug charges. A police-certified K-9 detected illegal drugs during at least two of the traffic stops, court records show.
Assistant Federal Defender H. Samuel Ansell filed an emergency motion Friday asking the court to hold a hearing so Doyle’s detention order can be reconsidered.
Ansell said Tracy has been cleared for admission to Valley Vista in Bradford, a residential drug treatment facility. A bed is available as of Thursday for Tracy, who worked as a machinist for decades at Husky Injection Molding in Milton, Ansell wrote.
After completing the basic in-patient treatment program, Tracy plans to apply for a higher level of care that is a “low intensity residential” program, Ansell wrote in his motion.
The residence is staffed 24/7 and the program lasts for 90 days, he said. The early phase has at least 19 hours of clinical counseling per week, Ansell said. It can be reduced if a resident begins work or volunteering, the motion said.
Ansell acknowledged that Tracy has been struggling for the past decade with his cocaine addiction and he has been using the drug on a daily basis for the past year.
Ophardt does not plan to object to the release plan, but U.S. Probation Officer Emerson Howe has concerns about Tracy’s after-care once he leaves Valley Vista, Ansell said. He suggested it could be addressed at a court hearing when the inpatient treatment was coming to an end.
First the federal court will likely need to set a hearing on the emergency release request.