Shiekhnoor Osman

Shiekhnoor Osman, a 40-year-old Black man, was shot and killed in a Burlington, Vermont, apartment on the evening of October 2, 2022. The shooting was the fourth homicide in the city that year and part of a series of violent events that unfolded over a single night.

The fatal encounter occurred at an apartment complex on Pine Street around 8:15 p.m. A man forced his way into a residence, entered a bedroom where Osman was with a woman, and shot him multiple times in the chest. Osman was found dead at the scene. The woman in the room with Osman was Jeanie Billings. Police learned that the apartment was known for drug-related activity and that the shooter had an ongoing dispute with Osman, described as a "beef" or "money issue."

Police quickly identified the suspect as Denroy Dasent, 52, a local restaurant co-owner. About three hours after Osman was killed, police in the neighboring city of South Burlington responded to another fatal shooting. At the Swiss Host Motel & Village, they found Brian K. Billings, 37, shot to death. Billings, who was Jeanie Billings's brother, had been shot outside his family’s residence at the motel and made it back inside before he died.

Following the second homicide, Burlington police spotted a car matching the suspect's description driving slowly past the Pine Street apartment complex. When officers initiated a traffic stop, Dasent allegedly fled, leading to a high-speed chase that ended in a waterfront parking lot. After a brief standoff where nonlethal rounds were used, Dasent was taken into custody. An affidavit noted that Dasent was recorded saying, "I shot two of them."

Dasent, a convicted felon, was charged with second-degree murder in the death of Shiekhnoor Osman and pleaded not guilty. He was held without bail. The case went to trial, and Denroy Dasent was convicted of second-degree murder for the killings of both Shiekhnoor Osman and Brian Billings. According to a later report from the State's Attorney's office, he was awaiting sentencing.