The Vermont State Police have announced the formation of a Major Crime Unit within its Criminal Division. The Major Crime Unit will consist of a group of experienced investigators who's primary responsibility will include investigations of homicide, officer involved shootings, missing persons where foul play is suspected, cold case homicides/missing persons and other complex criminal investigations deemed appropriate.
While the concept of a Major Crime Unit is new to Vermont, it is consistent with the operations of other state police agencies and large police departments across the country. Detectives in the Major Crime Unit will receive additional specialized training directly related to the investigation of major crimes.
The formation of the Major Crime Unit involved a re-structuring of existing positions currently within the VSP Criminal Division and is not the result of any new positions. A total of five detectives have been assigned to the Major Crime Unit, supervised by Detective Lieutenant Kraig LaPorte, a 26 year veteran of the department. The Major Crime Unit will be supported by the Crime Scene Search Team and all other BCI detectives across the state as needed.
"The Major Crime Unit will further enhance our mission to provide the highest quality of professional law enforcement services to the citizens of Vermont. These are among the most important, challenging cases we handle; the Major Crime Unit will enable the VSP to dedicate specialized resources to these complex investigations." - Major Glenn Hall