Vermont Town Mourns Girl's Tragic Death

Missing 12-Year-Old's Body Found; Uncle, A Convicted Sex Offender, Faces Federal Charges

(AP)  Instead of gathering at a vigil to offer prayers for the safe return of a missing 12-year-old girl, residents found themselves mourning the news that her body had been found.

Police unearthed Brooke Bennett's body Wednesday from a makeshift grave about a mile from her uncle's house, ending a weeklong search for the subject of Vermont's first Amber Alert.

"Brooke Marie, I love you so much," her mother, Cassandra Gagnon, said at the gathering later in the picturesque town of a little more than 5,000. "I just ask that justice be done for the person who took my baby away," she said, sobbing.

The girl's father, James Bennett, added, "I know Brooke knows that we love her and will always love her."

As state police announced the grim news Wednesday evening, they said Michael Jacques, the girl's 42-year-old uncle and a convicted sex offender, will face federal kidnapping charges.

Bennett, who had just finished seventh grade at Randolph Union High School, disappeared on June 25 after being seen at a convenience store with Jacques.

Jacques (pronounced jakes) has been in custody since Sunday on charges of aggravated sexual assault against a different underage girl. He has pleaded not guilty. Jacques, who is married to the sister of Brooke's mother, has 1993 convictions for kidnapping and aggravated sexual assault.

After searching in and around his home across town for days, police said they found Brooke's body in a spot where the earth had been disturbed.

"The painful discovery of Brooke's body today is tragic and heartbreaking," State Police Director Col. James Baker said. He called the death "clearly suspicious" but declined to give details before a planned briefing Thursday morning.

In an affidavit unsealed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Burlington, the FBI said an unidentified 14-year-old girl told investigators she was present on June 25 when Jacques tricked Bennett into thinking she was going to a party and took her to his Randolph home to be initiated into a sex ring.

The teenager said she was led to believe Bennett "would have sex with adult males" during the initiation. The 14-year-old said she herself had been having sex with Jacques since she was 9, as part of the sex ring.

The teen, who is related to Jacques, said she and Bennett watched television for a while before Jacques told her to leave and took his niece upstairs. The witness said she left the house with her boyfriend and didn't see Bennett again.

In another blow to the family, Bennett's former stepfather, Raymond Gagnon, was formally charged Wednesday with obstructing justice in the case.

He entered no plea at the federal hearing and was denied bail pending another hearing on Monday. The 40-year-old Gagnon, who lives in Texas, was on a regular visit to Vermont when he was arrested.

According to the affidavit, Gagnon told police he accessed his former stepdaughter's MySpace page from a computer at his San Antonio home after getting login information from Jacques.

Police said they have evidence that postings to the account were altered to make it appear that the 12-year-old had discussed a secret rendezvous shortly before she disappeared.

On that day, Jacques dropped Bennett off at a convenience store, and surveillance video shows they left in separate directions. She had told family members she was going to meet a friend and visit a hospitalized relative of the friend.

At the vigil for Bennett in Randolph - a site that still featured big banners reading "Come Home, Brooke, We Love You!!" - Gary Finch, Bennett's homeroom and math teacher last year, said she was an energetic and enthusiastic learner whom he loved having in class.

"She was always volunteering, always with a smile on her face. Smart, creative. It's a tragedy. It's unbelievable. It's hard to comprehend. I didn't think anything like this would happen to such a great kid," said Finch, one of about 300 people who attended.

Finch said that when school started last fall, Bennett was nervous about transferring from her small elementary school to the high school.

"She conquered that," he said. "She didn't conquer this."

[a62711]

let me give you an example of our justice system a judge in the state of florida gave custody to a register *** offender of his biological son age 6 and daughter age 15 said he has no juridiction over them because the father who just got out of prison after spending 8 yrs or sexual offense against a 15 year old is the legal custodial of these children. i wonder if this judge can guarantee that he will not abuse these children and they will too afraid to tell
confused so am i

[swgrantham]

Nothing is strong enough for these perverts. They must be kept like animals for a life time. Death is too easy for a *** offender. We need to torture them as they have done to young girls. I would love to be first in line to begin the torture program.

[ridgemont3]

no do people still feel we should do away with the death penalty? I know if it was my child he would never live another day. Jacques and the stepfather should be let out in the prison population and let them have them. Prisoners don''t like *** offenders. Remember years ago a guy had molested a girl and just so happened that the uncle was in the same jail as this guy. A couple of prisoners got a hold of him and carved the girls name on his forehead. The uncle said you will never forget my niece now will you. There should be more guys like him in the prisons to take care of the *** offenders when they get in.

My only question that keeps coming to mind is where in the heck is the wife and kids (if any) of this guy when this is happening? Didn''t she have any suspicions. I had read that he was married and had kids or kid

Lilly from maryland

[missybelle-2009]

HANG HIM by the neck until dead. OH how I wish we could torture these people before they die.


Posted by MyOpinion1 at 01:14 PM : Jul 03, 2008


I feel sad in my soul that I agree with you. But, I feel very strongly about it. The planning, stalking and preparation these predators go to is incredible, and the fear and horror this girl went through deserves more punishment than this freak will ever get. A broom handle studded with razor blades would be a good start. I swear if I were a parent and my only child ended up this way I would feel I had nothing more to lose.

[cburn665]

I pray that she did not suffer long. This saddens me so much. I can''t believe no responsible adult saw perhaps these children were in a questionable environment and it should have been reported.

God bless her soul

[feddupp]

It is a known FACT that a S*E*X offender CANNOT be "cured." They''ve even tried cutting OFF their "offending" part and it DOES NOT change their DESIRE to harm a child!

PLEASE, PLEASE, parents/guardians, anyone who CARES about their children. The only way to keep your child/loved one SAFE is to keep them AWAY from mol*es*ters!!

[pam1sadge]

The step-father and the uncle BOTH should be put in a cell together and let the rest of the jailhouse population take care of them! These people are sick and can never be cured from what ails them. Sexxx offenders are not rehabiliated! It hasn''t happened yet. They need to endure the same pain they inflicted on this poor innocent victim. What an absolute shame! And, to think this is happening all over the country. We need much stricter laws!

[nbenn514]

People - It doesn''t matter if they are your brother, inlaw, father, uncle, cousin, best friend, son, grandfather, husband - they are NOT going to change, they WILL reoffend and you MUST keep your child away from them. Period. This child paid for being related to a pervert with her life. And it was the adults she should have been able to trust to protect her who are responsible for her death.

[sassalin]

toldyouso12,

This is a terrible thing that happened. I pary for her family. I appauld you for being a parent that cares but don''t you think your actions are somewhat extreme. You have to teach your children to be safe but not teach them to fear the world and every man it it. You teach them the tools to keep them safe and as a parent you do your research on the families they visit but teching them that all men are something to fear (which is the message they may take from your actions) seems too much. Part of being a healthy adult requires a child to develop healthy relationships with adults other than their parents. You cannot monitor your children at all times. That is why you teach values and the tools to keep them safe when you are not around.

Like I said, I do give you creidt for being a parent when in today''s society it''s not "cool" to parent your children.

[mark46n]

Very sad, not much more can be said.

[feddupp]

I''m SORRY, but who could NOT have seen this coming???

This poor girl, living in such close proximity to a known S*E*X offender!?!?!

PLEASE let this be a lesson to ANYONE who knows of a convicted S*E*X offender--KEEP THEM AWAY FROM YOUR POOR CHILDREN and your CHILDREN AWAY FROM THEM!!!

[arnldmartin]

Hanging is too good for this creep,We ought to put a rope around his neck and drag him to all four corners of Vermont and all his friends involved in this *** ring.Then hang his and their bones for public viewing in Randolph as a warning to all those other creeps out there.I feel so bad for Brooke,that her life was snuffed out so young just because of ***,disgusting!

[jackp32]

Only in Vermont, where Howard Dean was elected Governor, can a man convicted of Kidnapping and sexual assault be out of prison walking the streets looking for another victim. Low and behold he finds one within his family circle. How convenient. I hope this girl''s parents wake up from their deep sleep and are held accountable for knowingly allowing their minor daughter to hang around that dirt bag uncle. Hey Vermonters its time for you to wake up and demand that your criminal justice system be revamped so that *** offenders are locked up forever.

[toldyouso12]

his incident has shaken up our community. i cried when i heard the news last nite and i still cry today. that poor girl did not deserve what happened to her. and don''''t say she''''s in a better place, because dead at such a young age is not a better place. she should still be alive and happy and unharmed. the uncle should never have had access to her.

Posted by mediamomma at 08:57 AM : Jul 03, 2008



Are you kidding? The uncle? Read the article again. Why do you think ol'' stepdad was making the trip to Vermont from Texas? For the scenery? He is also wanted on child sexxxx charges too--think he did not belong to that sexxx ring? Why do you think the step dad covered up the crime and tried to make it look like Brooke was seeing someone? Odds are Uncle and step dad were part of the same sick circle and no telling how long or who all raped that girl including STEP DAD!!!!

If you plan on not letting your children continue to be victims--wise up. The fact that stepdad kept coming to Vermont and was also wanted on sexxx charges stemming from him assaulting a Vermont girl--is a really big clue that he was in on the sexx ring as much as Uncle was.

[toldyouso12]

Posted by mediamomma at 10:37 AM : Jul 03, 2008


Our heart goes out to you and your daughter, we hope both of you are survivors and not victims. That said, never forget that molestation is a crime of opportunity and relatives are statistically more likely to molest or rape than a stranger.

The warning sign was the fact that at some point your daughter was left alone with an older male.
Because of this, a lot of us moms have a zero tolerance policy. Our kids are not allowed to visit friends without grown up supervision. My girls are never allowed to go to anyone''s home where men older than 12 are present, this includes sleepovers. At parties, until my tween was older, her older sister accompanied her. If dads are there, my girls are NOT.

My children have never, ever been left alone with any of my male relatives--but you are right--stuff still happens. I hired a Licensed daycare provider when my youngest was just 3 and had to go back home early instead of continuing on to work, I found out that my day care provider was out running errands and who was left alone with the kids? Her husband. As far as I know, nothing happened, except she lost me as a customer that day and I called CPS to report her.

[questionnews]

How about not executing this guy, but send out fliers to the prison that he will be sent to telling the inmates of his crime and then put him in the general population. He would be dead within a week. And it won''t be a painless death. This would be way faster that sitting on death row for 20 years.

[mediamomma]

no child should have to endure the pain of living w/being molested. that said, my daughter and i struggle every day from what her cousin did to her. i recently discovered that his record was expunged & yet he was convicted of a felony charge on 2 counts. how''s the record just vanish? i''m fighting with state atty office to get his conviction put back on the record & i''m also going to request that since they expunged it, that he should report for another 10 years once the conviction is reinstated. that''s the law here. after they get off probation they only have to report for 10 years & then they don''t have to be on the registered offender list anymore. that law has got to change because pedophiles can hide after 10 years. that''s not justice for the victim. my heart goes out to brooke & her parents. no one can predict that it''s going to happen to your kids. i never saw it coming. there was no warning sign for me.

[lochlan-2009]

In the old days, the mob would storm the jail house, grab the guy, and string him up from the closest elm. Justice served.

America isn''t what it used to be. And I''m not talking more then a hundred years ago.

[pure505]

And yet our "Supreme" Court just ruled AGAINST capital punishment for se* offenders because it is considered cruel and unusual punishment. Apparently raping a child is NOT considered by the federal government to be "taking a human life". What a joke.

[edgardebbins]

Whenever I suggest that we should be using a guillotine to execute all offenders convicted of murder or rape, most people think its absurd. But then about half of them get back with me in a few days and admit that it would make the system more interesting.