STATE OF VERMONT
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
VERMONT STATE POLICE
CASE#: 26A4009547
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Detective Sgt. Joshua
Mikkola
STATION: Vermont State Police Bureau of Criminal
Investigations Troop A East
CONTACT#: 802-334-8881
DATE/TIME: 09/15/2026 / 1601 hours
INCIDENT LOCATION: US RT 5 S, Barnet, VT
INCIDENT TYPE: Death Investigation
VICTIM: Stephen Lalancette
AGE: 73
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Hopkinton, NH
SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:
On Tuesday, September 15th, 2026, at approximately 1601
hours, the Vermont State Police responded to US RT 5 S in the Town of Barnet,
Vermont for a report of a motor vehicle crash. It was reported a truck swiped
the guardrail near the intersection of Carter Road and continued north for a
short period of time before pulling off the roadway.
Witnesses said they saw the male operator and sole occupant
of the truck exit the vehicle and described him acting erratically, at which
point he appeared to jump from a nearby cliff. He sustained fatal injuries as a
result of the fall and was pronounced deceased on scene by first responders.
The man was later identified as Stephen Lalancette,
73, of Hopkinton, New Hampshire.
Follow-up investigation indicated Lalancette may have been
suffering from a medical emergency at the time of this incident, and his death
is not considered suspicious.
His body will be brought to the Chief Medical Examiner’s
Office in Burlington for an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death.
No additional details are
available at this time.
