STATE OF VERMONT
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
VERMONT STATE POLICE
CASE#: 25B2004475
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Detective Trooper Mengbei Wang
STATION: Royalton Barracks
CONTACT#: 802-234-9933
DATE/TIME: 2014 -2025
INCIDENT LOCATION: Tunbridge, Vermont
VIOLATION: Embezzlement
ACCUSED: Jacqueline Higgins
AGE: 63
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Vershire, Vermont
SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:
On Aug. 11, 2025, the Vermont State Police in Royalton was contacted by the Tunbridge Fire Department regarding a possible embezzlement within the volunteer department. Investigation by the state police including a review of department financial records revealed that during a 10-year period from 2014 through 2025, $186,000 had been embezzled from the department. VSP’s investigation identified the suspect in the embezzlement as Jacqueline Higgins, who was hired by the Tunbridge Fire Department as a bookkeeper in 1994. Discrepancies in financial records were found when an audit was started, and Higgins resigned as the bookkeeper.
On Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025, Higgins was arrested and transported to the Berlin Barracks for processing. She was released with a citation to appear for arraignment at 8:30 a.m. Dec. 31, 2025, in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Court in Chelsea.
No further information is available at this time. The affidavit of probable cause will be filed with the court and made public following Higgins’ arraignment.
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