MANCHESTER, NH – A man with local ties was taken into custody in Lakeland, Fla., on June 26, 2018, after a sexual assault investigation led authorities to issue a warrant for his arrest.
Richard Brunt, 74 of Lakeland, FLA, was arrested without incident by Lakeland law enforcement as a fugitive from justice.
Brunt was arraigned in the 10th Judicial Court in Bartow, FLA on June 28, 2018 as a fugitive from justice. Brunt is a former school teacher and principal in Massachusetts who was recently indicted in the Hillsborough County Superior Court on multiple counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault that occurred over the past decades.
Brunt declined to voluntarily return to New Hampshire to answer to the above charges and is awaiting disposition in Florida. New Hampshire authorities have until the end of September to issue a Governor’s Warrant to have Brunt extradited back to New Hampshire.
The above arrest was announced July 12 jointly by Manchester Police Chief Carlo Capano and the NH Major Crime unit, and was the result of an extensive investigation and through the cooperative efforts of the Manchester Police Department, Massachusetts State Police, Hillsborough County Attorney’s Office, NH Attorney General’s Office and the New Hampshire State Police – Cold Case Unit.
Anyone with additional information related to the Richard Burnt investigation should contact Det. Richard Perreault at the NH State Police Cold Case Unit, 603-223-8977.
