By Mike Donoghue, Vermont News First
A Franklin County man, who was a person of interest shortly after an elderly Enosburgh woman was reported missing last week, was arrested on a charge of aggravated murder Thursday night, officials said.
Darren Martell, 23, of St. Albans is scheduled for arraignment in Vermont Superior Court in St. Albans on Friday afternoon.
Vermont State Police said Martell is responsible for killing Roberta Martin, 82, who was reported missing from her Butternut Hollow Road residence in Enosburgh last week.
State police arrested Martell on the murder Thursday night while he was in custody at the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans, where he has been jailed since Monday on an unrelated felony charge of lewd and lascivious conduct.
Nobody had been willing to post the $500 bail imposed in the lewd conduct case.
A judge on Thursday night ordered Martell held without bail on the aggravated murder charge pending his court arraignment.
State Police have worked closely on the case for nine days with the office of Franklin County State’s Attorney Bram Kranichfeld, which will be prosecuting the case.
If convicted, Martell faces a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.
State Police were alerted at 11:55 a.m. July 17 after family members were unable to contact Martin and they reached out to neighbors, who found suspicious circumstances at the home. The air conditioner had been removed from a window and was still running when it was found on the porch, police said. Duct tape also was found at the scene and the normally very neat home had been disrupted, officials said.
The family had last talked to Martin by phone about 11:30 p.m. July 16, state police said. Martin was known to be in good health both physically and mentally and her disappearance was considered “suspicious.”
Troopers were soon actively pursuing leads, and special teams including VSP’s Canine Unit and the Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program (drones) were involved in the search.
The VSP Major Crime Unit, led by Detective Sgt Isaac Merriam, took control of the case and Martell soon became a person of interest, officials said.
A massive search effort was conducted in the following days, including on Friday when state police executed a court-issued search warrant at a house and property adjacent to Martin’s home.
Martell had been living with the residents at the house next door to Martin.
Dozens of personnel from search and rescue teams with the Vermont State Police and additional agencies continued to cover more than 1,500 acres on foot around the Martin home.
Police said they found human remains – believed to be Martin – about 11 a.m. Sunday in a wooded area off Sand Hill Road in Enosburgh. The area, which included a burn pit, is close to Martin’s home.
The area was secured until members of the State Crime Scene Search Team could process the area. The remains were later taken to the office of Vermont’s Chief Medical Examiner in Burlington for confirmation of the identity and an autopsy.
The autopsy confirmed Martin’s identity, but no immediate cause and manner of death was announced by the doctor, state police said.
It was after the finding of the remains that state police said publicly said they were searching for Martell as a person of interest.
Detectives first observed Martell about noon Monday 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 between the school and the 55-plus community located on Gricebrook Road, police said.
When Martell spotted detectives walking toward him, he ran into the woods. Additional detectives, uniform troopers and St. Albans City Police officers responded to the area to help search for Martell and secure the area.
The St. Albans Town School went into “lock down” as law enforcement searched the area around the building. Martell was located a short time later and brought to the state police barracks in St. Albans, officials said. He was eventually arrested on the lewd conduct charge by a detective with the Vermont Drug Task Force, which was assisting on the case.
Investigators said at the time the arrest and lewd conduct charge were unrelated to the Martin investigation, but initially had said they were looking for him as part of the Martin investigation.
The Vermont State Police did encourage members of the public to be vigilant as the investigation unfolded – and to continue. Although police said there was no known evidence at the time to suggest the community was at risk, people were urged – as always – to take reasonable precautions, including doors to their homes and vehicles and remaining aware of their surroundings.
Among the other agencies assisting in the case are the Vermont Department of Fish & Wildlife, New England K9 Search and Rescue, and the Upper Valley Wilderness Response Team. The Enosburgh Fire Department and Enosburgh Rescue provided logistical support and assistance.