A Granville man has been arrested in the killing of his father, stepmother and stepbrother in Vermont.

Brian Crossman Jr., 23, is charged with three counts of aggravated murder in the fatal shootings of his father, 46-year-old Brian Crossman Sr.; his stepmother, 41-year-old Erica (Pawlusiak) Crossman; and his 13-year-old stepbrother, Colin Taft.

Vermont State Police said the killings happened early on the morning of Sunday, Sept. 15 in the family home on Vermont Route 133. Crossman Sr. shared the home with his wife and stepson.

Investigators obtained significant evidence tying Crossman Jr. to the killings, including digital footprint, statements, injuries and interviews, police said.

Vermont State Police worked with the office of Rutland County State’s Attorney Ian Sullivan. Investigators thanked the greater Pawlet community for their patience as the case unfolded. Crossman was arraigned and sent without bail to Warren County Jail.

A 27-page affidavit outlines the sequence of events and what led police to charge Crossman Jr.

Crossman called Vermont State Police at around 3:52 a.m. to report that he located three family members on the floor with apparent gunshot wounds.

Crossman was spending the weekend with his father, stepmother and stepbrother while his mother and stepfather, who live in Granville, were out of town.

Crossman told investigators that he had gone for a walk around midnight, which he claimed is something he likes to do for hours on end. He returned to see the bodies.

A 12-guage shotgun was used in the killing of Crossman Sr. and a 20-guage shotgun was used to shoot Erica (Pawlusiak) Crossman and Colin Taft, according to the affidavit.

Crossman Jr.’s grandmother told police that he was starting to have a “troubled” relationship with Crossman Sr. because of his mental health and learning disability.

The suspect had trouble fitting in and did not have any friends or socialize with anyone, she told police.

Crossman Jr.’s mother said she received a text from her son at 4:35 a.m. saying something bad happened and he was at Wells, Vt. School being questioned by law enforcement.

She said her that he had sought treatment from multiple psychiatric doctors and sought in-patient treatment at mental health rehab facilities, the affidavit stated.

She went on to say that his behavior was becoming more erratic. He was talking to himself as if he were having a conversation in his mind. He was not on any medication, drank alcohol occasionally and was believed to smoke marijuana.

As he got older, she said Crossman Jr. began resisting and “talking back” to his father.

Police said he also texted and sent Facebook messages to other family members early Sunday morning that he was “not doing well” and “dad is dead” and people “can’t help fix this,” according to the court document. 

Another relative said that Crossman Jr. has shown an interest in death and had tortured frogs and kittens in the past, according to the affidavit. In another incident, he would sit on the porch of his residence in Granville and make a gun gesture with his hand and shout “bang” at passing cars, according to the affidavit.

In another incident, he told someone to the effect. “One of these days I’m going to kill him.”

Crossman Jr. was at Glens Falls Hospital late Sunday night with his stepfather and mother. Investigators heard Crossman Jr. ask if the investigation had any camera footage. His mother said she did not know one way or the other. His response was “if they did, I probably wouldn’t be here.”

He was admitted to the mental health unit.

Investigators were able to track cell phone records that contradicted his claim of going for a walk, as well as headphones that were found in a room. If he had been wearing them going for a walk and came back, there would have been some blood on them.

Crossman Jr. also changed clothes, but he had blood on the original set of clothes that were found in the residence.

Crossman Jr. also had an injury on his right shoulder, which is the area of the body where a shooter puts the butt of a long gun to fire it. There were also multiple footprints in the dining area.