Todd Bussino Pleads Not Guilty To Multiple Convenience Store Robbery Charges

The Acting United States Attorney for the District of Vermont, Jonathan Ophardt, announced that Todd Bussino, 37, of Rutland, pled not guilty today in United States District Court in Burlington to charges that he robbed four Rutland-area convenience stores between November 2020 and March 2021.  U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin Doyle ordered that Bussino be held without bail pending trial.

According to court records, federal, state and local law enforcement officials in the Rutland area have been investigating a series of robberies that took place between early November 2020 and April 2021 in Rutland and surrounding towns.  In each of the robberies, a single male entered the store, waited until other customers had left and then demanded money from the clerk.  In almost all the incidents, the robber brandished a knife.  Bussino was arrested after the ninth such robbery, on March 7, but released on bail.  He was rearrested after a tenth, attempted robbery on April 13.  On April 21, a federal grand jury in Rutland charged Bussino with four of those robberies.

The Acting United States Attorney emphasizes that the charges in the indictment are merely accusations and that Bussino is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty.

If convicted, Bussino faces up to 20 years of imprisonment for each robbery and a fine of up to $250,000.  The actual sentence would be determined with reference to federal sentencing guidelines.

This case has been investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Rutland Police Department, the State Police and the Rutland County Sheriff’s Department.  

Bussino is represented by Assistant Federal Defender Steven Barth.  The prosecutor is Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory Waples.