Criminal Investigation Bureau detectives on St. Croix on Tuesday re-arrested Delroy Tounge, who has been bound over to face charges as an adult in connection to an August robbery and assault that result in the shooting of two V.I. Police Department officers.
Police said Tounge was one of three suspects who were arrested and charged with the crime. Tounge was 16 at the time of his arrest and has been incarcerated at the Youth Rehabilitation Center since the incident.
At about 8:40 p.m. Aug. 18, three armed men robbed patrons at the Eat at Cane Bay Restaurant, stealing jewelry, cash, cell phones and other valuables. The suspects fired shots at the restaurant, but no one was injured.
As the suspects fled the area in a vehicle, and St. Croix Chief of Police Christopher Howell and Police Officer Elsworth Jones, who attempted to intercept them, were fired upon by the fleeing suspects.
Both officers remain on medical leave as they continue to recover from the incident.
The next day, Aug. 19, detective received a citizen’s tip they said "proved to be crucial" to the case. Working with that information, police arrested 23-year-old Alphonso J. Butler Jr. The following day they arrested 52-year-old Melville Parris and a 16-year-old male minor. All three suspects were charged with first-degree robbery and first-degree assault.
Tuesday the Superior Court issued an arrest warrant for Tounge, now 17 years old, and ordered that he will face these charges as an adult. Tounge was arrested just before 4 p.m. and returned to the Youth Rehabilitation Center pending further court action.
