On June 6, 2022, a resident discovered the body of a man alongside Greeley Road in Springfield, Vermont. The man was identified as Justin Gilliam, a 38-year-old Black/African American resident of Springfield. The circumstances were deemed suspicious, and the Vermont State Police took charge of the case. An autopsy performed at the Chief Medical Examiner's Office in Burlington determined that Mr. Gilliam had died from a gunshot wound to the head, and his death was officially ruled a homicide.
The killing was one of several violent, gun-related crimes that troubled the town during that period, which authorities linked to illegal drug activity.
For the next two years, state police conducted an extensive investigation into the murder. Detectives pursued a complex web of sources, uncovering evidence that included a burnt-out car and bullet casings found in graveyards. The investigation suggested the homicide was connected to a dispute involving drug trafficking. According to information gathered by police, a shooting that had injured another man in May 2022 may have actually been intended for Mr. Gilliam.
A significant breakthrough in the case came in August 2024, when Vermont State Police obtained an arrest warrant for Paul Lachapelle Jr., 28. Lachapelle had been living in Springfield at the time of the killing but was located and arrested in Lisbon, New Hampshire, on August 28, 2024. Investigators stated they believed the motive for the killing was a dispute among individuals involved in illegal drug trafficking.
Lachapelle was extradited to Vermont in early September 2024 to face charges of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder. At his arraignment on September 10, 2024, in Vermont Superior Court in White River Junction, he pleaded not guilty to both charges. A judge ordered him to be held in jail without bail pending trial.
The case went to trial in Windsor County Superior Court in late April 2026. After a three-day trial, a jury deliberated before returning its verdict in early May. The jury found Paul Lachapelle Jr. not guilty on all charges. As of May 2026, following the acquittal, the murder of Justin Gilliam remains unsolved.
