The man suspected in a fatal shooting in Vermont has been arrested two years later in New Hampshire, authorities said Wednesday.
The body of Justin Gilliam, a 38-year-old from Springfield, Vermont, was found on the side of Greeley Road near Spencer Brook in the town on June 6, 2022. Vermont State Police said they were investigating his death as a homicide — Gilliam was shot in the head.
Paul Lachapelle Jr. was arrested Wednesday by New Hampshire State Police, the agency said. The 28-year-old from Littleton, New Hampshire, was arrested on a charge of being a fugitive from justice and was initially being held at Grafton County jail ahead of an extradition hearing in Littleton District Court Thursday, police said.
Lachapelle waived extradition Thursday and was brought back to Vermont, where he was being held in the custody of the Vermont Department of Corrections, police said.
Lachapelle was wanted in Vermont on charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. Vermont State Police said they obtained the arrest warrant on Friday.
Lachapelle lived in Springfield at the time — the town is about two hours south across the New Hampshire-Vermont border from Littleton — and the killing is believed to have sprung from a dispute over selling drugs, according to police. They didn't share how he was identified as the suspect.
Lachapelle was expected to face the murder charges at Vermont Superior Court in White River Junction, police said. There was no immediate word on the outcome of the hearing, and attorney information is unknown at this time.
