By Kolby LaMarche

In the early hours of Saturday, August 15, 2026, a violent altercation in downtown Burlington left one man dead from a single stab wound. As of this morning, when a suspect turned himself in, details on that incident became much clearer. 

Burlington police responded just after 4 a.m. to a disturbance in the parking lot behind the civil courthouse area near 175-199 Main Street, close to the Church Street intersection. Officers found a man suffering from a stab wound and arranged for his transport to the University of Vermont Medical Center, where he later succumbed to his injuries.

Authorities have now identified the victim as Deng Dau, 24. 

According to Burlington Police Chief Shawn Burke, investigators determined that Dau had become involved in a physical fight with two other individuals. Police allege that during the confrontation, 24-year-old Hassan Haji stabbed Dau once in the groin. 

Haji, a Winooski resident, later turned himself in to Burlington police. 

On Tuesday, he was charged with second-degree murder. He appeared in Chittenden Superior Court, entered a plea of not guilty, and was ordered held without bail. His next court date is scheduled for August 27.

The fatal incident was one of several violent episodes reported in the downtown area over the weekend. Police also responded to a separate stabbing earlier Saturday involving non-life-threatening injuries, as well as reports of gunfire in different locations that resulted in no injuries. 

Hassan Haji’s name has appeared in local court records before. In June 2020, when he was 18 and listed as a Burlington resident, Vermont State Police arrested him at a Shell gas station and Champlain Farms convenience store on Roosevelt Highway in Colchester. 

Troopers had received a report of a vehicle driving erratically on Interstate 89 near Exit 16. They located a matching vehicle at the gas station and determined it had been stolen days earlier in South Burlington.

Haji was taken into custody without incident. He faced charges including driving under the influence, operating without a valid license (his license had been criminally suspended following a prior conviction for driving without a license), operation without the owner’s consent, and providing false information to a police officer. 

According to the Vermont State Police account at the time, he attempted to claim that another person had been driving the vehicle. He was processed at the Williston Barracks and released with a citation to appear in Chittenden County Superior Court. 

Youth involvement in criminal activity has drawn particular attention in recent years across Burlington and Chittenden County. Reports have documented groups of teenagers and young adults participating in assaults, vehicle thefts, and other offenses, over many years, leading to numerous injuries, property damage, and a worried community. 

Some local analyses have linked a portion of these incidents to broader networks involving drugs and firearms that stretch beyond Vermont’s borders, with young people sometimes used as intermediaries in those activities. Some assert, too, that Vermont’s laws on youth offenders are light and do not create accountability, notably since the public can know very little about any alleged criminal under 25, according to state law on court records. 

Poverty, family instability, substance use, and limited constructive opportunities have all been cited by community service providers as contributing factors, many of which are particularly acute in Burlington. 

Vermont’s juvenile justice system prioritizes rehabilitation, reflecting the understanding that adolescent brains continue developing into the mid-20s. Programs through schools, community justice centers, and youth services organizations aim to interrupt cycles of offending through mentoring, after-school activities, and restorative approaches. 

In Burlington specifically, expanded learning opportunities and summer programming have been prioritized in an effort to provide positive structure during peak hours when youth crime historically rises. 

Still, multiple high-profile, some nationally reported, cases involving teens and young adults continue to fuel public discussion about whether current resources and accountability measures are sufficient – or even work.

Car thefts and related property crimes involving younger suspects have remained a persistent issue in the region, like a group known as the “Kia Boys” who have stolen many cars in and around Chittenden County.

Community advocates and law enforcement alike have noted the challenge of balancing support for at-risk youth with the need to protect public safety and hold individuals responsible for harm caused.