A Connecticut man, now behind bars in New York state on a firearm offense, is expected to be arrested next week on murder and arson charges.
Manuel Gomez, 32, of Hartford is accused of committing a double homicide more than three years ago in the Washington County town of Woodbury.
Vermont State Police, who have been tight-lipped about the investigation since the killings, revealed for the first time Wednesday that a drug debt may have the motive for the slayings.
A warrant for Gomez’s arrest was issued Wednesday on charges of aggravated murder and arson in the killings of Carol Fradette, 29, and David Thompson, 48, at their homes on Bliss Road in Woodbury on Oct. 30, 2018, Vermont State Police stated in a news release issued late Wednesday.
Gomez is currently serving time at the Otisville Federal Correctional Institution in Orange County, New York, on an unrelated federal conviction for illegal possession of a firearm. He is set to be released on that charge next week, and will face arrest on the Vermont charges, according to state police.
He will be arraigned on the charges in Vermont once he’s extradited from New York. A schedule for extradition has not yet been announced.
The bodies of Thompson and Fradette were found in two residences on the same property, separated by about 150 feet. The medical examiner’s office ruled both deaths were homicides. Thompson died of multiple gunshot wounds and Fradette was killed by blunt force trauma and a single gunshot wound to her head, the autopsies found.
Their three dogs were also shot and killed, and the residences were set on fire late on the night of Oct. 30, 2018, according to police. Investigators said they believed the fires were intended to conceal the homicides.
Police have released few details of the investigation since the killings. However, the news release issued Wednesday stated that Gomez had been selling heroin to Thompson, who may have owed him more than $20,000.
According to the release, “Digital evidence shows that Gomez traveled to the Woodbury area from Hartford, Connecticut, on the evening of Oct. 30, 2018, and arrived at Thompson’s residence shortly before a neighbor called 911 to report a fire at the home.”
Investigators said Gomez denied knowing about the homicides, or being involved in them.
However, “statements from Gomez regarding his whereabouts on the evening in question contradict digital and physical evidence obtained during the investigation,” the news release stated.
Woodbury, located on the northern edge of Washington County, is home to a little under 1,000 people. Bliss Road is off Sand Hill Road, and the property where the slayings occurred is about 2 miles from Route 14.
A neighbor told VTDigger in 2018 that he heard gunshots, saw flames from the fire and called 911.
Vermont State Police declined further comment on the case Wednesday, stating that additional details are expected to be released through court records following Gomez’s arraignment in Vermont.
Washington County State’s Attorney Rory Thibault could not immediately be reached late Wednesday afternoon for comment.