VERMONT — Spring weather is here and there will be an increase in recreational hikers parking their vehicles at trailheads throughout Vermont. Last year there were numerous car break-ins at various hiking access locations in Vermont. In a recent press release, Vermont State Police Cpl. Andrew Leise said these break-ins were due in part to the ongoing heroin and opiate challenges the state currently faces.
Vermont State Police are warning citizens to not leave valuable items in their vehicles at trailheads. Leise urged people in particular not to leave purses, iPads, iPods, cash, credit cards, debit cards, Social Security cards, wallets or jewelry in their cars.
“These crimes occur each summer and into the fall months in Vermont,” Leise said. “Troopers are sending out a pro-active message to citizens to take their valuables with them on their hike or to simply leave valuables at home.”
Some areas where frequent car break-ins have occurred in the past include Mt. Philo State Park in Charlotte, Camel’s Hump State Park in Huntington and Duxbury, Underhill State Park, Snake Mountain in Addison, Falls of Lana in Salisbury, Silver Lake in Goshen, Lincoln Gap in Lincoln and the Robert Frost Trail in Ripton.
Leise urged those who are a victim of this type of crime to immediately cancel debit and/or credit cards. If your Social Security card is stolen, contact one of the three major credit reporting bureaus (Experian, Transunion or Equifax) to put a security freeze on your credit. The above reporting bureaus can be located online.
Troopers will be conducting pro-active patrols at hiking access points throughout Vermont. Vermont State Police ask that you contact your local barracks where the specific incident took place should a crime occur. If you observe any suspicious activity or vehicles at any of the trailheads or hiking access areas contact the state police barracks covering that specific area.
On April 19, two days after issuing those warnings, Leise reported that someone had smashed out a window on a Monkton woman’s 2009 Hyundai Tucson parked at the Camel’s Hump State Park in Huntington and stolen cash, debit cards and a Vermont driver’s license. The pocketbook containing those items was in a side door map holder in plain view.
Anyone with information on this incident is asked to contact VSP Williston at 1-802-878-7111.
In other recent activity, Vermont State Police:
•  At around 9:30 a.m. on April 15 stopped a motor vehicle driven by Casie R. Yandow, 25, of Ripton on Hamilton Road in Weybridge and cited Yandow for driving with a criminally suspended license.
•  On April 15 began investigating reports that someone had forced their way into two homes on Laura’s Lane in Bristol between 7:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. that day. The residents said the burglar had stolen laptop computers, a printer and a bow, among several other items. State police are investigating; anyone with information is asked to call the VSP’s New Haven barracks at 802-388-4919.
•  On April 15 at approximately 8:22 p.m. arrested Tracy Yandow, 52, of Ripton and cited him for violating his conditions of release. Police said the arrest stemmed from a fatal motor vehicle crash that occurred the previous day in the Weybridge; Yandow was the passenger in the vehicle that struck and killed 55-year-old Kelly Boe of Middlebury. Yandow had been released from jail under the condition that he not consume any alcoholic beverages. Police report that Yandow consented to provide a sample of his breath to a trooper at the crash scene, and that Yandow’s breath sample determined that he had been drinking alcohol prior to the motor vehicle crash.
•  On April 15 at approximately 11:37 p.m. responded to a car crash on Route 30 in Sudbury. Police identified the driver of the car as Gina Germond, 51, of Sudbury and located her at a residence in Sudbury. Police reported that Germond exhibited signs of intoxication and they administered standardized field sobriety tests. Germond voluntarily submitted to a preliminary breath test, which yielded a blood alcohol concentration reading of 0.131 percent (the legal limit for driving is 0.08 percent). Police cited Germond for driving under the influence, second offense.
• On April 17 at around 1 p.m. received information that 31-year-old Jessica Groff, who had an active warrant for her arrest for failure to appear, was staying at a residence in Starksboro. State police went to the Hillside Drive residence, located Groff and took her into custody. Troopers lodged Groff at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility.
•  On April 20 were alerted to the burglary of the Dakin Farm business on Route 7 in Ferrisburgh.  Troopers reported that someone broke in through a window sometime between 5 p.m. on Sunday and 6 a.m. on Monday and stole an undisclosed amount of money. Anyone with information on this crime is asked to contact the state police at 388-4919. Information can also be submitted online at www.vtips.info or by texting “CRIMES” (274637) to Keyword: VTIPS.