BURLINGTON, VERMONT: A Vermont man, who previously worked as a Boy Scouts leader and faces charges related to the fatal shooting of three Palestinian college students, was reportedly fired from his financial services job just weeks before the incident.
According to The Boston Globe, Jason Eaton, 48, from Burlington who has pleaded not guilty to three counts of attempted murder in Saturday, November 25, shooting was terminated from his role as a sales assistant at CUSO Financial Services on November 8 after working there less than a year, the company said Monday, November 27.
What did the company say after the horrifying incident?
“We are horrified by the shooting and are cooperating with law enforcement as they investigate. We have no further comment,” a CUSO spokeswoman said. However, she did not shed light on why Eaton was sacked from the job.
What are the other places where Jason Eaton worked?
Eaton’s recent employment history also included stints at Ameritrade in Fayetteville, New York, where he worked for less than two years, and at Edward Jones in East Syracuse, New York, where he was employed for under a year, according to Financial Industry Regulatory Authority records.
Eaton also listed additional jobs on his LinkedIn profile he had occupied over the years, including a farmer and craftsman, a night cleaner at a noodle shop, and a “social entrepreneur.”
Under “Volunteer Work,” Eaton wrote that he worked as a den leader with the Boy Scouts of America from 2017 to 2022.
Jason Eaton is currently not a member of the Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America confirmed to the outlet that the suspect had served as an assistant scoutmaster at a now-defunct troop in Syracuse, and was last registered with the organization in New York in 2021 when he voluntarily stopped being a member.
Eaton is not currently a member of the Boy Scouts of America, the group said. “Mr Eaton’s alleged actions do not reflect the values of Scouting. Upon learning of his arrest he was been banned from registering in any Scouting capacity and will be proactively placed in the Volunteer Screening Database, permanently preventing his registration or participation in the future,” the Boy Scouts said in the statement.
When was Jason Eaton arrested?
Eaton was aarrested on Sunday, November 26, after allegedly shooting three students of Palestinian descent, all age 20, as they walked on Saturday, November 25, to a family dinner in Burlington. The attack is being investigated by federal and state authorities as a possible hate crime.
Who are the victims?
The victims have been identified as childhood friends from the West Bank — Hisham Awartani, a Brown University student, Tahseen Ali Ahmad, a Trinity University student, and Kinnan Abdalhamid, a Haverford College student.
“They stated that the person had not made any comments to them and had merely approached them while they were walking down the street, essentially minding their own business,” Burlington Police Chief Jon Murad told reporters. The students were speaking in a mix of English and Arabic, and two of them were also wearing Palestinian keffiyeh scarves when they were shot.
Two of the victims were in stable condition, while a third was seriously wounded and faced a long recovery because of a spinal injury, according to a family member.
Eaton moved to Burlington over the summer from Syracuse and legally purchased the Ruger .380 pistol used in the shooting, Murad told reporters. “I am just shocked by the whole thing,” said Eaton’s mother, Mary Reed, adding “I can’t believe he would do something like this.”
Federal agents found the gun and a loaded magazine containing five rounds in Eaton’s bedroom dresser, according to a police affidavit. Eaton came to the door holding his palms up and told the officers he’d been waiting for them.
