Vermont State Police are investiating the “suspicious” death of a delivery truck driver from Boston, whose body was found with apparent gunshot wounds Friday evening in Rockingham.
An autopsy is set for Sunday on the body Roberto Fonseca-Rivera, 44, at the Vermont Chief Medical Examiner’s Office in Burlington to determine the cause and manner of his death.
Fonseca-Rivera was working for Katsiroubas Produce of Hyde Park, Massachusetts, and had been in Vermont making deliveries in a company vehicle, state police said in a press release.
His last known location was at about 12:15 p.m. Friday, leaving Rutland heading south on Route 103, according to police.
According to the statement from police, investigators believe the shooting took place between 1 p.m. and 1:30 p.m. Friday, near where Fonseca-Rivera’s body was located on Rockingham Road, also known as Vermont Route 103, between Lower Bartonsville and Williams roads in Rockingham.
Police responded to the scene around 5:45 p.m. Friday after a call for a welfare check on the driver of the box truck on Rockingham Road, according to police.
Troopers arriving at the scene found the truck pulled over to the side of the southbound lane of the road, with Fonseca-Rivera dead inside.
Police said the preliminary investigation indicates this was an isolated incident, and Katsiroubas Produce is cooperating with the investigation.
State police ask anyone who saw the Katsiroubas Produce truck on Route 103 on Friday afternoon, including anyone who may have seen anything suspicious with the truck or with any other vehicles operating near the truck, to contact the barracks in Westminster at (802) 722-4600.
Ted Katsiroubas, the CEO of Katsiroubas Produce, posted a statement on the company’s Facebook page Saturday evening.
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the tragic death of our dedicated, kind and reliable co-worker, Roberto Fonseca-Rivera,” according to the statement. “We learned in the past few hours that Vermont State Police suspect foul play in Roberto’s death. We hope the investigation is quick and successful. We are assisting in any way we can. We want justice for Roberto.”
The company CEO added, “Roberto’s smiling, outgoing presence always brightened our days. This was a man who would stay after work and help coworkers, repairing their vehicles.”