Update No. 1: Shaftsbury Barracks / Missing person from Readsboro
STATE OF VERMONT
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
VERMONT STATE POLICE
CASE#: 24B3003089
RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Trooper Ben Irwin
STATION: Shaftsbury Barracks
CONTACT#: 802-442-5421
DATE/TIME: Aug. 25, 2024
INCIDENT LOCATION: Readsboro, VT
INCIDENT TYPE: Missing person / death investigation
VICTIM: Harold Lavanway
AGE: 73
CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Readsboro VT
SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:
On the morning of Monday, Aug. 26, 2024, troopers from the Shaftsbury Barracks were notified of a vehicle over an embankment on Tunnel Street in the town of Whitingham. The vehicle matched the description of Harold Lavanway’s 2011 Honda Civic. Troopers responded to the location and confirmed that Mr. Lavanway was deceased inside the vehicle.
Initial investigation by VSP shows that Mr. Lavanway was traveling northbound on Tunnel Street and navigated a left-hand curve in the roadway. As the roadway straightened, Mr. Lavanway veered off the northbound shoulder, coming to a position of rest about 10 feet down a steep embankment. The time of this crash is currently unknown.
Mr. Lavanway’s body will be transported to the Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington for an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death.
Troopers ask that anyone with information about this incident call the Shaftsbury Barracks at 802-442-5421.
This investigation is ongoing, and no further information is available at this time.
***Initial news release, 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 25, 2024***
On the morning of Aug. 25, 2024, the Vermont State Police - Shaftsbury Barracks received notice of a missing person in Readsboro. Harold Lavanway has been reported missing by family. Attempts to locate Lavanway by family and Vermont State Police have been unsuccessful at this time.
Current information indicates Lavanway was last seen on Friday, August 23, 2024, at approximately 10 PM by a neighbor in Readsboro, traveling south toward the Monroe Bridge area in Massachusetts. Lavanway is believed to be operating a gray 2011 Honda Civic bearing Vermont Registration KCC693.
A current photo of Lavanway is attached and anyone with information is asked to please contact the Shaftsbury Barracks at 802-442-5421.
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