MONTPELIER — A Vermont man at the center of complaints about crime and policing in Chelsea who had been held at gunpoint by a Chelsea business owner who accused him of stealing from his auto mechanic shop was released from prison over the weekend.

Scott Irish, 43, was released from prison on Sunday after completing his minimum sentence on convictions of grand larceny and possessing stolen property. Irish is now under supervision of the Burlington Probation and Parole office, according to Department of Corrections records.

Irish, a Berlin, Vt., native who had no permanent address at the time of his arrest, had been held at gunpoint by Chelsea business owner Wayland Childs at a Barre motel.

Childs had located Irish at the motel after he had identified Irish as the person who had broken into his auto repair business nine days earlier and subsequently attempted to sell a computer he had stolen from the premises in 2021.

When police arrived at the motel they found Childs had overpowered Irish to the ground and was pointing a handgun at him, according to court records.

Irish was arrested and charged with a felony count of burglary and a misdemeanor count of possession of stolen property. Meanwhile, Childs was charged with a felony count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, which was later knocked down to a misdemeanor count of criminal threatening.

Although many of the property crimes in Vermont to which police had tied Irish occurred outside of Orange County, his pursuit and subjugation by Childs in a motel parking lot elevated Childs to a cause célèbre. Supporters argued Childs had been forced to take matters into his own hands because they said police were failing to meet the rising level of drug-fueled property crimes in the area.

Childs’ arrest and charge for what many saw as simply a crime victim pushed to his limits attracted national media attention and sparked a campaign in his defense, with #StandWithWayland stickers appearing on cars. A social media campaign sought to raise money for his legal defense

Childs pleaded no contest and was placed on probation with a nine-month deferred sentence.

Irish will remain on probation for eight years, meaning any further offenses can land him back in prison.

Childs did not return a phone message by press time seeking comment on Monday.

Contact John Lippman at jlippman@vnews.com.