VERMONT STATE POLICE
CASE#: 22A4001322
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Lt. Jason Letourneau
STATION: VSP St. Johnsbury
CONTACT#: 802-748-3111
DATE/TIME: About 5:30 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 27, 2022
INCIDENT LOCATION: 1400 River Rd., St. Johnsbury, VT
MISSING PERSON: Richard C. Gammell Sr.
AGE: 84
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: St. Johnsbury, VT
Vermont State Police During search efforts Tuesday morning, May 10, 2022, crews located a body believed to be that of Richard C. Gammell Sr., 84, of St. Johnsbury.
Two wardens with the Vermont Department of Fish & Wildlife located the body along the banks of the Connecticut River. The wardens had set out in a canoe at about 8:45 a.m. and were more than three miles downstream from the location where Mr. Gammell had entered the river in February when they spotted the body shortly before 11 a.m.
Members of the Vermont State Police, including the Scuba Team, and a helicopter from U.S. Customs & Border Protection’s Air & Marine Unit also were involved in today’s search and recovery effort.
The body was recovered and brought to the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington for positive identification and for an autopsy to determine cause and manner of death. The state police will issue an additional update on this case when the medical examiner’s work is complete.
***Update No. 4, 3:55 p.m. Monday, May 9, 2022***
Search efforts involving a helicopter and the Vermont State Police Scuba Team in the Connecticut River are scheduled to resume Tuesday, May 10, 2022, for Richard C. Gammell Sr., 84, of St. Johnsbury. Members of the Vermont Department of Fish and Wildlife also will be participating. Members of the public should expect to see a low-flying helicopter and increased police presence in the area.
Searches on foot on a near-daily basis by VSP have yet to locate Gammell, who is believed to have drowned in February.
The state police continues to request that anyone with information that could prove relevant to locating Gammell call the St. Johnsbury Barracks at 802-748-3111.
***Update No. 3, 4:10 p.m. Tuesday, April 5, 2022***
Today’s search with a helicopter resulted in negative contact with Gammell. The Passumpsic River from the area that Gammell entered the river was searched to the New Hampshire state line / Connecticut River via helicopter. A ground crew of troopers and detectives also assisted in the search efforts, by walking the banks of the river and checking points of interest.
Local state police detectives and troopers will continue to search the river in the coming days/weeks by vehicle, foot, unmanned aircraft and K9.
Police continue to ask that anyone with information that may assist in locating Gammell call the St. Johnsbury Barracks at 802-748-3111.
***Update No. 2, 3:50 p.m. Monday, April 4, 2022***
Troopers and detectives from the St. Johnsbury Barracks have continued to search for Richard C. Gammell Sr. since Feb. 27, 2022, on a daily basis. This includes walking the banks of the Passumpsic River, checking points of interest, using an unmanned aircraft and a state police K9. Searching was difficult until the ice broke up about two weeks ago. To this date, Gammell has not been located.
The Vermont State Police plans to search the Passumpsic River via helicopter on Tuesday, April 5, 2022, with assistance from U.S. Customs & Border Protection’s Air & Marine Unit. The public can expect to see a low-flying helicopter during that time.
Police continue to ask that anyone with information that may assist in locating Gammell call the St. Johnsbury Barracks at 802-748-3111.
***Update No. 1, 4:20 p.m. Monday, Feb. 28, 2022***
Search efforts resumed Monday, Feb. 28, 2022, in and around the Passumpsic River for Richard C. Gammell Sr., who is believed to have gone into the water on Sunday morning in the vicinity of 1400 River Rd. in St. Johnsbury. The Vermont State Police SCUBA team searched under the river ice Monday, but efforts did not locate Mr. Gammell.
Mr. Gammell is presumed deceased, and VSP’s search is focused as a recovery operation. Crews concluded their work for the day at about 3 p.m. and will monitor river and weather conditions to determine when to resume.
This incident is not considered suspicious. If anyone sees anything or has information that may assist in the recovery, they are asked to contact the state police barracks in St. Johnsbury at 802-748-3111.
***Initial news release, 4:40 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 28, 2022***
The Vermont State Police is searching for a man who was reported missing from his home early Sunday morning, Feb. 27, 2022, in St. Johnsbury.
Richard C. Gammell Sr. left his home on Mountain Avenue at about 5:30 a.m., and his vehicle was located about three hours later in the vicinity of 1400 River Rd. Tracks in the snow indicate Mr. Gammell may have walked from his vehicle to the Passumpsic River and entered an area of open water.
Members of the Vermont State Police, including the SCUBA Team and Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program, have been searching the river and adjacent areas. The St. Johnsbury Police Department and St. Johnsbury Fire Department have provided assistance.
This case is not considered suspicious. Police ask anyone with information that could assist investigators to call the St. Johnsbury Barracks at 802-748-3111.
Search efforts ended for the day at 4:30 p.m. due to deteriorating weather conditions. The search is expected to resume on Monday. Updates will be provided when more information becomes available.