Regional Industry & News

Slate Ridge owner faces foreclosure, plans record lawsuit

WEST PAWLET, Vt. (WCAX) - A foreclosure process is underway for a 30-acre property in West Pawlet that was once used as an unlicensed paramilitary-style training camp. It comes as the owner of the property, Daniel Banyai, prepares to file what he calls the largest lawsuit in Vermont’s history.

It’s fair to say that for years, Banyai was public enemy number one in the town of Pawlet.

In a one-on-one interview with WCAX Reporter Adam Sullivan, Banyai addressed his controversial past.

Adam Sullivan: Did you move to Vermont to start this training camp?

Daniel Banyai: Yes, 100%.

But the firearms training facility known as Slate Ridge was short-lived. And, thanks to nearly half a million dollars in fines levied against the property, it’s now being foreclosed on.

“The state is going to take the land. I want your viewers to receive that. I’m emotionally prepared for that,” Banyai said.

A site visit at the end of 2023 revealed that Banyai was not in compliance with a court order to remove all of the property’s unpermitted structures. A warrant was later issued for his arrest. It came after years of back and forth with the town and multiple court rulings which stated Banyai never got the proper approval for the training facility.

Adam Sullivan: You disagree with all of those rulings?

Daniel Banyai: Correct. You know there are very specific elements that there is ambiguity. You know a lot of people say, ‘Well, Daniel, you never got a permit.’ Well, there is no permit to move dirt because dirt is not a structure.

The often tense dispute played out in the public forum, pitting a property owner against his own select board while creating a general feeling of unease throughout the town.

Adam Sullivan: Many people in this community feared you. They feared you. They feared your crew. They said you were intimidating. They said you made threats. What is your reaction to that?

Daniel Banyai: Well, I say this: Please show something authentic. Show a police report. I could go, ‘You just threatened me just now,’ and run on social media and you will be a villain.

The conflict hit a boiling point when Banyai was violently taken into custody in 2024 on the outstanding arrest warrant. That landed him in jail for almost a year, accused of assaulting an officer. Banyai says it was just another example of government overreach against an individual sticking up for his constitutional rights.

“People don’t like that. You combine that with someone that loves guns, respects guns, and has a profession behind a gun, you’ve got a toxic bomb,” Banyai said.

Most of the buildings and structures on the property-- where Banyai still lives-- were torn down while he was incarcerated. But earlier this year, he was acquitted of the assault charge and is now planning to launch a lawsuit against the town and the constable who arrested him.

“The movement currently is to hold anyone and everyone that either negated my constitutional rights or trampled on my civil liberties accountable,” Banyai said.

The foreclosure process on the property is still pending; however, at this time, a sale date has not been announced.

The town of Pawlet’s lawyer, Merrill Bent, sent WCAX a statement that reads in part: “As for assertions relating to the zoning process, they have been presented to and rejected by various courts... The Town’s actions in the zoning process have been reviewed by the courts and upheld. Mr. Banyai was represented by legal counsel in many of those proceedings... The court orders in those cases speak for themselves, notwithstanding attempts at revisionist history.”