STATE OF VERMONT
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
VERMONT STATE POLICE
CASE#: 26B2000383
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Detective Trooper Eric Acevedo, Detective Sgt. Christopher Blais
DFS INVESTIGATOR: Assistant State Fire Marshal Shawn Goodell
STATION: Royalton Barracks
CONTACT#: 802-234-9933
DATE/TIME: About 10:10 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026
INCIDENT LOCATION: 4573 Vermont Route 14, Sharon, VT
VICTIM: Brett Novak
AGE: 58
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Sharon, VT
SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:
Following completion of autopsy and notification of relatives, the Vermont State Police is able to identify the victim as Brett Novak, 58, of Sharon. The Chief Medical Examiner’s Office currently lists the cause and manner of death as pending.
***Initial news release, 8:40 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026***
On Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, the Sharon Fire Department and South Royalton Rescue Squad were dispatched to a fire in a camper trailer at 4573 Vermont Route 14 in Sharon after numerous 911 callers reported seeing black smoke coming from the camper. Sharon Fire arrived, entered the camper and extinguished the fire. Sharon Fire located a man deceased inside the trailer.
Sharon Fire requested assistance from the Department of Public Safety Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit in determining the origin and cause of the fire. FEIU members worked with detectives from the Vermont State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigations to investigate the fire and the untimely death. Preliminary investigation indicates this was an accidental fire related to smoking materials and is not considered suspicious. The deceased man was transported to the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington for autopsy to confirm identity and determine the cause and manner of death. The man’s name is being withheld at this time pending notification of next of kin.
Anyone with information regarding the fire is asked to contact Detective Trooper Eric Acevedo at the Westminster Barracks at 802-722-4600, or Detective Sgt. Christopher Blais at the Royalton Barracks at 802-234-9933. Information also may be submitted by contacting the Vermont Arson Tip Award Program (VATAP) hotline at 1-800-32-ARSON (1-800-322-7766).
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