COVENTRY, Vt. (WCAX) – Sources tell WCAX News that a third person may have been involved in the shootout that killed a Border Patrol agent in Vermont.
Agent David Maland, 44, was killed during the incident Monday afternoon on Interstate 91.
WCAX first broke the news that Maland was shot during a traffic stop in Coventry.
The FBI has said two suspects were involved in that shootout, but Wednesday, WCAX News confirmed through sources that a third person also may have been involved. We don’t know exactly what their involvement was, where they are or whether they’re in custody.
Here’s what we do know: Investigators had been watching the people involved and they have been described as being in higher-level crime. Federal investigators also knew they had guns. That’s the German national who was shot and killed, and a woman, who we’re told is an American, who was wounded during the traffic stop Monday afternoon and is in federal custody.
Agent Maland was shot in the neck and killed.
We’re still trying to confirm whether another border patrol agent was involved in the shootout and how long the traffic stop lasted before shots were fired.
Maland, a U.S. Air Force veteran, known as Chris, was assigned to the Swanton sector where he was a K-9 handler. Before he was in our region, Maland worked for the Border Patrol in Texas along the southern border, and he worked security duty at the Pentagon during the Sept. 11 attacks.
Wednesday on the Minnesota Statehouse floor, Rep. Krista Knudsen, his cousin, called for a moment of silence and said Maland wanted to make a difference.
“Chris was an incredible man and will be missed dearly,” Knudsen said. “I am grateful for his service and I know he was very proud of it. Our family is heartbroken. He died in the line of duty, serving to protect our country. We will cherish his memories and mourn his sacrifice. Until we meet again, godspeed, your good and faithful servant.”
Matt Mahoney, a high school classmate of Maland, called him a great guy.
“Just sorry for his loss and sorry for his family and, but at the end of the day, he was doing what he loved, and, you know, he was protecting us. And then that’s who Chris was,” Mahoney said.
As for the suspects, we are told they were on the radar of authorities before Monday’s incident and were reportedly looking to buy real estate in the Northeast Kingdom. It’s still unclear what they were doing and why they were in Vermont.
Authorities have not released any other information and we will continue to update you as we learn more.