By Mike Donoghue, Vermont News First
Serious violence continues in Vermont’s largest city with a vicious attempted homicide of a woman with multiple knife wounds in Downtown Burlington and unrelated aggravated assault with a gun by the traffic rotary on Shelburne Road.
Burlington Police were initially vague, including in a preliminary news release, by saying they were investigating a “suspicious event,” and one person was in custody on Greene Street about 11:30 a.m. Thursday.
Eight hours later Burlington Police in an updated news release finally admitted the “suspicious event” actually was an attempted homicide. A woman had been stabbed multiple times, her throat slashed and she was left for dead in a residence, police said.
Police, who said in the initial news release at 1:30 p.m. that the suspect had been taken into custody when officers responded, added in the updated release that the apprehension was outside the residence while the man was apologizing for stabbing the woman and slashing her throat.
Responding officers found Kevin J. Calero-Alvarez, 30, of Burlington, standing outside the residence shirtless, crying hysterically and yelling various things to include “sorry,” police said in the evening news release.
The officers made an emergency entry into the residence and located the woman, laying on a bed crying, with several stab wounds to her torso, arms and neck, Detective Lt. Mike Beliveau said.
While her name is public record under the law, Burlington Police were withholding her identity.
Vermont News First has learned a preliminary identification of Rosa Ivana Nunez, 40, from Nicaragua and an employee at UVM food service.
First aid was provided to Nunez at 4 Greene St. until the Burlington Fire Department arrived and took over emergency medical treatment.
The woman was transported to the UVM Medical Center where she is in serious condition, officials said.
Police said Calero-Alvarez placed a second woman – who also was not named – in fear for her life when he assaulted her while holding a knife within the residence.
Police shut down vehicle and pedestrian traffic for several hours on Greene Street, near Pearl Street, just east of North Union Street.