Two people are dead in the northwestern Vermont city of St. Albans, but police have not revealed many details on their deaths, pending an investigation described as more complex than initially thought.
A man and woman were found dead in an upstairs apartment on Lincoln Avenue, Chief Gary Taylor of the St. Albans Police Dept. said, adding that they might have been there for days.
The grim discovery came after the man's relatives called the cops saying they hadn't heard from him in a while. The landlord let officers in Sunday night, Taylor said.
"The landlord and building owner lives downstairs," Taylor said, telling necn that the property owner had not reported any unusual sights or sounds from the unit.
Pending autopsies Tuesday, Taylor declined to say who these people are, how they died, or the nature of their relationship.
He did say there were signs of significant violence that required a tricky investigation with the support of the Vermont State Police.
"It's very complex," Taylor said. "Maybe more complex than we had anticipated."
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"It's definitely not something you want to wake up and see," said neighbor David Smith
Smith and others on Lincoln Avenue saw their street blocked off with police tape as detectives went door-to-door asking if anyone had information.
Franklin County State's Attorney Jim Hughes stopped by to check out the situation mid-day.
Throughout the afternoon, crime scene experts, in their protective suits, emerged from the apartment carrying evidence bags.
"I have two young children, so this obviously is something that kind of makes me a little nervous," neighbor Dan Bruce said.
Chief Taylor said he expected to see the State Police mobile crime lab moved Monday evening, but for local officers to maintain a presence on Lincoln Avenue through the night.
While he said he could not reveal much about the investigation at this early juncture, Taylor did say whatever happened inside the apartment appears to have been contained to the apartment, so he said there's no threat to the general public.
