Chief District Court Judge Wilma A. Lewis on Monday sentenced three St. Croix men to 10 years in prison each for their roles in two armed robberies that took place in January 2013, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced.
The defendants – Francisco “Cisco” Hassell III, 29; Edwin Hendrickson Jr., 28; and Rusiel “Romeo” Encarnacion, 33 – received a three-year prison sentence for third-degree robbery.
Lewis also imposed a consecutive 84-month prison term on each defendant for using and brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence. Under federal law, any sentence for using a firearm during a crime of violence must be run consecutively to any term of imprisonment imposed for the crime of violence during which the gun was used.
Hassell, Hendrickson and Encarnacion were arrested Jan. 13, 2013, by the V.I. Police Department after robbing patrons at the Cool Out Bar in Peter’s Rest, according to court records. Shortly after that robbery at the Cool Out Bar, the three men also robbed two people walking on Hospital Street in the vicinity of the VIPD Marine Unit.
The defendants were subsequently indicted by a federal grand jury and pled guilty on Feb. 14, 2014. They have been detained since their arrest and were remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service at the conclusion of Monday’s sentencing.
U.S. Attorney Ronald Sharpe said the sentences should send a message to would-be criminals. "As these sentences show, those who use guns to engage in violent acts against the citizens of the Virgin Islands will be vigorously prosecuted and subject to stiff punishment," Sharpe said.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the V.I. Police Department, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rhonda Williams-Henry and Alphonso Andrews, Sharpe said.
