Local News
Victims killed in Ferrisburgh plane crash identified
A tragic plane crash in Ferrisburgh, Vermont, claimed the lives of a teenager and three adults on Sunday. The four-seat, single-engine Piper aircraft departed Windham Airport in Connecticut at approximately 8:30 AM, embarking on a two-hour flight to Basin Harbor Airport.
The plane successfully landed, and the occupants arrived for a brunch reservation at Basin Harbor. After departing the restaurant shortly after noon, the plane was expected to return to Connecticut. However, when it failed to arrive as scheduled, relatives of the occupants contacted authorities.
Through the use of cellphone location data, police and the Federal Aviation Administration determined that the plane’s last known location was near the airstrip in Vermont.
Middletown police notified the Vermont State Police of the situation at around 10:20 PM on Sunday.
Troopers from the New Haven Barracks, along with members of the Middlebury Police Department and the Vergennes Fire Department, responded to the scene.
With the assistance of a drone operated by Middlebury police, investigators located the wreckage of the aircraft in a wooded area east of the Basin Harbor Airport at approximately 12:20 AM on Monday.
The four victims, identified as Paul Pelletier (55), Frank Rodriquez (88), Susan Van Ness (51), and Delilah Van Ness (15), were pronounced dead at the scene.
Their bodies were transported to the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington for autopsies to determine the cause and manner of death.
Local News
29-Year-Old Alex Rodriguez Found Dead on University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, No Foul Play Suspected
URBANA, Ill. — A 29-year-old Champaign man found dead on the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus Monday morning has been identified as Alex C. Rodriguez, according to the Champaign County Coroner’s Office.
The University of Illinois Police Department (UIPD) responded to the area of Green and Wright streets at approximately 6:42 a.m. after receiving a report of an unresponsive person near the Alma Mater statue.
Officers arrived and found Rodriguez on a concrete bench. Emergency medical assistance was requested at the scene.
The Champaign County Coroner’s Office responded, and Rodriguez was pronounced dead at approximately 7:16 a.m., according to Coroner Laurie Brauer.
Authorities said Rodriguez was not affiliated with the University of Illinois.
UIPD provided an update Monday afternoon, saying preliminary observations at the scene revealed no signs of foul play.
Police also said there was no evidence of an ongoing threat to the university campus or surrounding community based on the information available when officers responded.
Because investigators did not identify an active threat, the university did not issue an Illini-Alert emergency notification.
The circumstances surrounding Rodriguez’s death have not been determined.
An autopsy has been scheduled, and the death remains under investigation by the University of Illinois Police Department.
Authorities have not released additional information about the circumstances leading to Rodriguez’s death.
The investigation remains ongoing, and additional details are expected as investigators receive further information from the autopsy and other evidence.
No foul play has been indicated based on the preliminary investigation.