STATE OF VERMONT

DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

VERMONT STATE POLICE

 

CASE#: 24A1003742

RANK/TROOPER FULL NAME: Detective Trooper Vienna Gildea

STATION: Vermont State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation Troop A West – Williston

CONTACT#: 802-878-7111

 

DATE/TIME: 4:55 a.m. May 29, 2024

INCIDENT LOCATION: Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility, South Burlington, VT

VIOLATION: Aggravated assault with a deadly weapon

 

VICTIM: Yvonne Frederiksen

AGE: 52

CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Incarcerated at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility

 

ACCUSED: Veronica Lewis

AGE: 40

CITY, STATE OF RESIDENCE: Incarcerated at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility

 

 

SUMMARY OF INCIDENT:

The Vermont State Police has cited Veronica Lewis, 40, an inmate at Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility in South Burlington, on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon arising from an attack on her cellmate.

 

The assault occurred at about 4:55 a.m. Wednesday, May 29, 2024. Per standard protocol, the Vermont Department of Corrections reported the incident to state police, who initiated an investigation.

 

VSP’s investigation determined that Lewis, who is serving a sentence for attempted second-degree murder, entered her cell and attacked her sleeping cellmate, 52-year-old Yvonne Frederiksen, with a facility-issued tablet computing device and a lock that had been placed inside a sock. Frederiksen sustained serious injuries and was initially hospitalized at the University of Vermont Medical Center in Burlington; she has since been returned to the prison.

 

Lewis was ordered to appear for arraignment on the aggravated assault charge at 8:30 a.m. Aug. 1, 2024, in the Criminal Division of Vermont Superior Court in Burlington.

 

VSP’s investigation into this incident remains active and ongoing. Anyone with information that could assist detectives in this case is asked to contact Detective Trooper Vienna Gildea at the Williston Barracks at 802-878-7111. Anonymous tips may be provided online at https://vsp.vermont.gov/tipsubmit.

 

No further information is available from the state police at this time. The affidavit of probable cause will be filed with the court and made public following Lewis’ arraignment. Members of the media should call the Court Clerk’s Office to confirm details of the hearing. Further questions should be directed to the Department of Corrections.

 

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