Charged with crack cocaine at Burlington City Hall Park
Vermont News First
Federal authorities have decided they will prosecute a former Philadelphia man, who officials say has been dealing drugs around Burlington City Hall Park.
Burlington Police initially busted Aaron M. Badeau, 35, on state charges for three felony sales of crack cocaine and one felony count for possession of the drug in pre-packaged distribution quantities on Sept. 30.
Officers later that day seized more drugs and a scale with white powder on it at Decker Towers at 230 St. Paul Street when police conducted a court-ordered search, records show.
Interim Police Chief Shawn Burke said it was the latest effort to crackdown on drug use and abuse in Burlington. Burke said police have monitored multiple controlled purchases of drugs since late August.
When Burlington Police arrested Badeau at City Hall Park for the three drug sale charges, he made a spontaneous utterance that he was in possession of drugs, court records show.
The arresting Burlington detectives said they found Badeau carrying a felony amount of suspected crack cocaine which was packaged in gram and fractional gram quantities.
Now a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration special agent, working with Burlington Police, filed a criminal complaint in U.S. District Court against Badeau. It charges Badeau with possession with intent to distribute more than 28 grams (one ounce) of crack cocaine – the weight that provides for enhanced federal prison sentences.
No federal court date has been set for Badeau, who goes by the street name “Philly Whiteboy,” the criminal complaint from DEA noted.
Burlington has been fighting the escalating drug pipeline with Philadelphia for a number of years. A large number of dangerous drug dealers come to the Burlington area because of the potential increased profits selling drugs in Vermont and the limited chance of detection and punishment.
Badeau has numerous criminal convictions from Pennsylvania including assault, fraud, drugs, terroristic threats, larceny, arson, escape, aggravated assault, false information to police, driving while under the influence and disorderly conduct, Burlington Police said. They noted Badeau had two active arrest warrants pending for failure to appear in court and violation of probation, but were only extraditable from surrounding states.
The Burlington Police Drug Unit and its Emergency Response Unit, along with members of the DEA conducted the coordinated arrest operation in City Hall Park.
They later raided Decker Towers where Badeau was utilizing a residence of a friend to assist in his illegal trafficking, Burke told Vermont News First.
The friend told police Badeau would pay $75 a month to stay at the apartment at Decker Towers and Badeau would also sell him crack cocaine, court records note.
Police said during a post-arrest interview Badeau admitted using crack cocaine and with selling the drug in the Burlington City Hall Park area, records note. Badeau explained he would buy about 14 grams (a half ounce) of crack every day or two from a supplier at City Hall Park for re-sale to others and would smoke some for his personal use, court papers note.
A cellphone seized from Badeau had the phone number used to set up two of the three crack cocaine sales to a confidential informant working with police, court records show.
Burke said the criminal case highlights the continued efforts by Burlington Police and Federal partners toward addressing drug-related crime in the city.
Police said Badeau was lodged overnight initially for lack of $10,000 state bail pending his arraignment in Vermont Superior Court. Bail was bumped to $50,000 the following morning during his arraignment. Badeau, who pleaded not guilty to the charges, remains at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans.
Badeau was told that if his state bail is posted, he must refrain from going to City Hall Park or Decker Towers.
But now the feds have a filed a detainer on him and Badeau will eventually be brought to U.S. District Court on Elmwood Avenue for his new criminal case.
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Categories: Public Safety
Thankfully, Chittenden County, with it’s criminal-coddling State’s Attorney, has a backup plan in the Federal Court to deal with urban interlopers flooding our area with street drugs. Besides the obvious problems of open drug use in the park and the associated crackheads engaging in crimes to finance their habits there is the burden “white boy” saddled on the decent residents of Decker Towers. Not clear if his “roommate” there was consenting or coerced into accommodating him there, but if he was a willing participant, he should be booted out and possibly implicated criminally. If the legitimate tenant was coerced, there ought to be some creative federal charges that would come down on “white boy” for taking advantage of him.
Interesting the Feds are after this guy, the state would let him go.
People need to leave my husband and kid father alone he has a life he came down
Here be with his wife and his unborn child worries about the drug dealer in city hall
Park you guys are worried about him and his cased worried about these crack head drugs dealer and let him go
Maybe people just need to leave my husband and kid father alone people make
Mistake you guys are worried about ruined other people life’s but yet there still people still in city hall selling drugs and you let that happened or you guys let rapist out of jail but bc he’s not from here you guys are making a sense out of it he came down to be with me and and his unborn child there a reason he came down here to be with his wife