The Department of Justice has dismissed all charges filed last week against Officer Anderson Poleon in the District of St. Croix, Government House announced in a news release Sunday.
Criminal charges had been filed and a warrant issued Wednesday. On Friday, staff of the Attorney General’s office found a document that indicated the charges filed were not warranted. Upon this discovery the Department of Justice immediately took action to have the charges dismissed against the officer.
Poleon had been accused of taking a vehicle from the police impund lot and later selling it. The 39-year-old police officer faced charged charges of embezzlement and extortion.
The office of the Attorney General regrets the action which led to the arrest, Government House said in its news release. The statement adds that the V.I.P.D. investigators who investigated the matter acted in good faith and conducted their investigation appropriately.
While the Attorney General’s office adheres to a standard that no person should be charged with a crime absent a thorough investigation and a good faith and reasonable belief by prosecutors that a crime had been committed, Deputy Attorney General Bruce Marshack said, “We were reminded of that fact by this occurrence today and realize that we had fallen short of that standard on this occasion and immediately took steps to remedy that error. Justice is more than a word. It is the mission and the obligation of this office.”
