Michael Pimental, 37, was found dead along the wooded edge of a driveway in Concord, Vermont, on October 14, 2018. An autopsy determined he died of multiple gunshot wounds and his death was ruled a homicide. Investigators described the incident as isolated rather than random.

The probe linked Pimental’s killing to local drug trafficking. Court documents say Pimental and his girlfriend, Krystal Whitcomb, were distributing heroin from their Waterford, Vermont, residence. Federal filings named Whitcomb and two acquaintances, Michael Hayes and John Welch, as suspects and alleged they conspired to kill Pimental in connection with their drug operations. Those filings identify John Welch as the person who shot Pimental on October 13, 2018.

The day after the body was found, Whitcomb and Hayes were stopped in New Hampshire driving a car registered to Pimental; officers found firearms, a large quantity of drugs, U.S. currency, and Pimental’s blood in the trunk. A federal grand jury later indicted Whitcomb, Hayes, and Welch on charges that included using a firearm during a drug trafficking crime causing Pimental’s death, and another person, Michael Ashford, was charged in the drug conspiracy. Whitcomb and Hayes later pleaded guilty to federal charges.

If anyone knew Michael Pimental, his movements in October 2018, or the people named in the filings, please share what is known.