Burlington police identified the man assaulted and killed by three juveniles on August 11 on Church Street as 42-year-old Scott Kastner.

Kastner had a history of violent offenses and prior arrests and was on the sexual offender registry. 

According to Burlington Police, officers on foot patrol in City Hall Park responded around 1:31 p.m. on August 11 to a report of an assault in progress near City Hall. Several individuals fled on foot and by bicycle as officers approached. Police apprehended three juveniles believed to be involved, one of whom was found carrying a firearm. Investigators say that the gun had been brandished during the attack.

Kastner died in the days following the assault. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner is reviewing the case to determine the official cause and manner of death.

Kastner was no stranger to law enforcement. On September 1, 2021, the U.S. Marshals Service and Burlington Police announced they had arrested him as a “non-compliant sex offender who recently escaped police custody.” At the time, he was wanted by the Vermont Department of Corrections for violating release conditions related to an aggravated domestic assault conviction. He also had outstanding warrants from Burlington police for aggravated domestic assault and from Colchester police for failing to comply with sex offender registry requirements.

The current investigation remains active and ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Zach Beal at (802) 540-2364 or zbeal@bpdvt.org.