78.5 F
Charlotte Amalie
Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Homicides 2020

A chronological log of the homicides recorded in 2020 in the U.S. Virgin Islands, as reported by the VIPD. Cases are broken down by island. While this listing is based on VIPD reports, the Source does not include suicides or vehicular homicides in its listing which the police and some other media do. This can lead to a variance in the number of incidents reported.

STX – 1
Territory – 1
Date of death – Jan. 11
34-year-old Ray Thomas was shot and killed at about 2:38 a.m. in his Estate Sion Hills home. The 911 call center received a report of shots fired at a residence in Estate Sion Farm. Officers traveled to the location and found the body of an unresponsive male who sustained multiple gunshot wounds. He was later identified as Thomas. At 6:23 p.m. the same day, police arrested Malik Iles, age 20 of Barren Spot, and charged him with first-degree murder/domestic violence.

STT – 2
Territory – 2
Date of death – Jan. 17
Ferdinand N. Marshall, 46 years old died of wounds received during a shooting in the Contant area. According to the report from the VIPD, at about 7:22 p.m. Friday police were notified about a shooting in Contant. Officers arrived at the scene and observed an unresponsive black male lying face up. Emergency Medical Technicians arrived on the scene and pronounced the victim dead.

STX – 1
Territory – 3
Date of death Jan. 18
The VIPD confirmed that at approximately 12:11 p.m. Saturday, the 911 call center received a report of a gunshot victim in the vicinity of Thomas Bakery in Castle Coakley. The victim was transported via ambulance to the Juan F. Luis Hospital & Medical Center, where he succumbed to his injuries. He was identified by police as 22-year-old Gyasi Chiverton.

STJ – 1
Territory – 4
Date of death – Feb. 4
At about 9:15 p.m. police were dispatched to the area of the Pine Peace basketball court in reference to a gunshot victim. Officers found an unresponsive black male slouched over in the driver’s seat of a dark-colored vehicle. The male had sustained gunshots about his body. The victim was identified as 32-year-old Jahlil Ward.

STT – 2, 3
Territory – 5, 6
Date of death – Feb. 16
Police were called to the vicinity of Oswald Harris Court on St. Thomas where they found the bodies of 23-year-old Carlos Ingles and 25-year-old Endry Montero Bacili. The two men were found in a car and appeared to have sustained multiple gunshot wounds about their bodies. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded that the men did not have any vital signs.

STT – 4
Territory – 7
Date of death – Feb. 19
Mikal Dore, 25, was found dead Wednesday morning in Estate Thomas. At about 12:25 a.m. the 911 emergency call center received a call from a concerned citizen of shots fired in Estate Thomas. Officers traveled to the area and found an unresponsive black male, later identified as Dore, sitting in the driver’s seat of a vehicle with what appeared to be multiple gunshot wounds about his body.

STX – 3
Territory – 8
Date of death – Feb. 29
The body of 28-year-old 28-year-old Jahkim E. Santiago was found floating in the water at Good Hope Beach Saturday morning. The body appeared to have suffered multiple gunshot wounds. The victim was identified by next of kin. According to the police report, at about 9:15 a.m. Saturday the 911 emergency call center was notified of a body floating in the water at Good Hope Beach. Officers responded and found a lifeless male in the water. When the body was retrieved from the water, detectives found that the male had suffered multiple gunshot wounds.

St. Croix – 4, 5
Territory – 9, 10
Date of death – March 20
At 9:04 p.m. Friday the 911 emergency call center received reports of two individuals in the bush area of the Old Cockpit in Estate Glynn. Callers said the bodies appeared to be covered in blood. The victims were identified by next of kin as 29-year-old Malik Graham and 23-year-old Malcolm Francis. Officers arrived and found a male victim with no vital signs and another male victim with signs of life. The victim with signs of life was transported via ambulance to the Juan F. Luis Hospital where he later succumbed to his injuries. Both men suffered gunshot wounds about the body.

STX – 6
Territory – 11
Date of death – March 29
Luis Perez, a 23-year-old resident of Castle Burke on St. Croix, died of gunshot wounds in Estate Barren Spot on St. Croix. According to the VIPD, at about 7:45 p.m. Sunday, the 911 emergency call center was notified of shots fired in Estate Barren Spot. Arriving at the scene, the officers discovered a vehicle in the roadway. The driver of the vehicle, later identified as Perez, had gunshot wounds about the body. He was transported to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Memorial Hospital for treatment, and later succumbed to his injuries.

STT: 5
Territory: 12
Date of death: April 8
At 4:19 a.m. the Major Crime Unit was notified of a homicide that occurred in Hospital Ground. Detectives traveled to the area and found an unresponsive male lying face down in the roadway with gunshot wounds about the body. The victim, identified by next of kin as 44-year-old Deshaune Harrigan, succumbed to his injuries at the scene.

STT: 6
Territory: 13
Date of death: April 8
At 8:14 p.m., the 911 emergency call center was notified of a gunshot victim in Hospital Ground, in the vicinity of the Fish Market. Dispatched officers found a black male with no vital signs. The victim was identified by next of kin as 42-year-old Michael McKie.

STT – 7
Territory – 14
Date of death – April 10
At 8:07 a.m. April 10 the 911 Emergency Call Center dispatched officers to Hospital Ground on a report of shots being fired. Officers traveled to the area, in the vicinity of the basketball court, and found an unresponsive male lying in the roadway with multiple gunshot wounds. It was determined that the victim had no vital signs. He was later identified as 35-year-old Junior Akimo Freeman. It was the third deadly shooting in the Hospital Ground area in three days.

STT – 8
Territory – 14
Date of death – April 16
A 26-year-old St. Thomas man was shot and killed early Thursday in the Tutu area. At 1:47 a.m. Thursday the 911 emergency call center received a call from a concerned citizen that shots had been fired in the Tutu area. Officers traveled to the area and found an unresponsive black male on the ground. The man was later identified as 26-year-old Shaq’kil Roberts. The victim appeared to have sustained multiple gunshots to the body. Emergency medical technicians on scene concluded that he did not have any vital signs.

STT – 9
Territory – 16
Date of death – April 16
At about 3:11 p.m. April 16 the 911 emergency call center received reports that shots were fired in the Bovoni Housing Community. Officers traveled to the area and learned that three males sustained gunshot wounds. Two of the victims were transported to the Schneider Regional Medical Center by private vehicle, and the other was transported to the hospital via ambulance. One of the victims, identified by next of kin as 26-year-old Bertstrand Gilkes, subsequently succumbed to his injuries. The other two victims are in stable condition.

STX – 7
Territory – 17
Date of death – April 28
The body of 19-year-old Emanuel Moise of St. Croix was found in the bushes east of Cramer’s Park. The body was not identified until DNA testing was completed in September. The cause of death was determined to be from multiple gunshot wounds. According to police, at 6:51 a.m. the 911 emergency call center received a report of what appeared to be a body in the park’s bushes. Officers responding to the scene found the body of a male, dead from an apparent gunshot wound. No form of identification was found on the body.

STT – 10
Territory – 18
Date of death – May 8
Jamal Jacobs, 39, was shot to death in the Garden Street area of St. Thomas. At around 8:29 a.m. Friday the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots fired in the Garden Street area. Officers were dispatched, and subsequently found a black male lying face down in the roadway. The victim appeared to have sustained multiple gunshot wounds. Emergency medical technicians on the scene said man did not have any vital signs.

STX – 8
Territory – 19
Date of death – May 12
A man was shot and killed in the Mon Bijou area of St. Croix. The victim was identified as 22-year-old Jahkerby Charles. At about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday, the 911 emergency call center received reports of shots being fired in the Mon Bijou area, and someone on the ground near a residence in Mon Bijou. Officers found an unresponsive young black male with multiple gunshot wounds about the body. Emergency medical technicians on the scene stated that the male victim had no vital signs.

STT – 11
Territory – 20
Date of death – May 15
At about 7:54 p.m. the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots fired in Frenchman’s Bay. At the scene, officers found an unresponsive black male later identified as 28-year-old Elon Frett of St. Thomas. He appeared to have sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his body. Emergency medical technicians concluded that he did not have any vital signs.

STT – 12
Territory – 21
Date of death – May 26
At about 8:57 p.m. the 911 emergency call center received a report of an unresponsive male in the vicinity of the Estate Frydenhoj ballpark. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded that the man, later identified as Mendel Felix, appeared to have sustained a stab wound to his upper body, did not have any vital signs. Around 2 a.m. Wednesday, police arrested Kyan Crooke, age 32, of Estate Frydenhoj, charging him with voluntary manslaughter in the incident.

STX – 9
Territory – 22
Date of death – Not reported. Police announced her death on May 27.
Selena Chitolie, a 19-year old woman who was one of two injured in a May 15 shooting in Estate Paradise, died of her wounds, the V.I. Police Department reported. At about 2:40 p.m. May 15, the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots fired and an injured person in Estate Paradise in the vicinity of the Evelyn Williams Elementary School. Officers arrived to the area and found two women injured by gunfire. Both victims were transported for medical assistance to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital and Medical Center via ambulance.

STX – 10
Territory – 23
Date of death – May 31
At about 5:30 p.m. the 911 Emergency Call Center received a report of shots fired on Market Street in Christiansted, the area also known as “Times Square.” Responding officers found an unresponsive black male on the ground. The male, later identified as Terrance Leroy James, age 38. He appeared to have sustained multiple gunshot wounds about the body. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded that the male did not have any signs of life.

STT – 13
Territory – 24
Date of death – June 14
At 9:41 p.m. the 911 dispatch center received a call of a gunshot victim in the Savan area of St. Thomas. Arriving at the scene, officers found a male individual, subsequently identified as Vernon Rawlins, who had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. Rawlins was transported to Schneider Regional Medical Center, where he died of his injuries.

STX – 11
Territory – 25
Date of death – June 23
At 4:14 p.m., the 911 Emergency Call Center received a report that someone was shot in West Caret Bay. According to the V.I. Police Department, officers traveled to the area and found an unresponsive male, who appeared to have sustained a gunshot wound to his upper body. Emergency Medical Technicians, on the scene, concluded the male did not have any vital signs. Police identified the deceased as 62-year-old Oliver Christian, Jr.

STX – 12
Territory – 26
Date of death – July 4
At about 11:48 a.m. July 4, the 911 Emergency Call Center received reports of shots being fired in the Smithfield/Two Brothers area, just east of Walter I. M. Hodge Pavilion. Officers traveled to the scene and discovered an adult Black male who sustained multiple gunshot wounds about his body. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded the victim had no vital signs. The victim was identified by next of kin as Nathaniel Heywood, a 23-year-old resident of Walter I. M. Hodge Pavilion.

STT – 14, 15
Territory – 27, 28
Date of death – July 9
At about 12:57 p.m. Thursday, July 9, the 911 emergency call center was notified of shots fired in the shuttered Tutu High Rise housing community, in the vicinity of Building 13. Officers traveled to the area and found two Black males with gunshot wounds. Emergency Medical technicians on the scene concluded that one of the victims had no signs of life. The second was transported from the scene via ambulance to the Schneider Regional Medical Center, where he later died. The victims were identified by next of kin as 29-year-old Rique Ashby and his cousin, 14-year-old Aaron Ashby.

STT – 16
Territory – 29
Date of death – July 23
At around 11:16 p.m. Wednesday, July 22, the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots fired in Smith Bay, in the vicinity of the Pavilions and Pools Hotel. At the scene, officers found a Black male, identified as 29-year-old Khamal DeSilvia, who had sustained multiple gunshot wounds about his body. DeSilvia was transported by ambulance to the Schneider Regional Medical Center for treatment, however he subsequently succumbed to his injuries.

STX – 13
Territory – 30
Date of death – July 23
At 7:48 a.m. Thursday, July 23, the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots being fired in the Louis Brown Villas housing community. The witness told the 911 Dispatcher that she had been on the phone with the victim when she heard gunshot sounds through the phone. The victim then stated that he was being attacked. Officers traveled to the scene and found the victim with gunshot wounds. The victim was identified by next of kin as 28-year-old Jonathan Fontanelle. He was transported to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital, where he later succumbed to his injuries.

STX – 14
Territory – 31
Date of death – July 31
At around 8:17 a.m. July 31, the 911 Emergency Call Center received a report of shots fired at H. H. Tire & Battery in Estate Pearl. Arriving at the scene, officers found an unresponsive Black male sitting in a vehicle with gunshot wounds. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded the male had no vital signs. The victim was identified by family members as 27-year-old Aaron Joseph.

STX – 15
Territory – 32
Date of death – July 31
At roughly 3:25 p.m. July 31, the 911 emergency call center received a report of a gunshot victim in the Lorraine Village housing community. Police at the scene learned that unknown assailants shot the victim, who ran into a nearby apartment for cover. The victim expired from his injuries on the scene. The victim was identified by family members as 26-year-old Kaleem Ramsey.

STX – 16
Territory – 33
Date of death – Aug. 4
At 10:22 p.m. the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots fired at the Holger Danske Hotel on King Cross Street, Christiansted. At the scene, officers discovered a deceased Black male, identified as 24-year-old Rashawn Wyre, with multiple gunshot wounds.

STX – 17
Territory – 34
Date of death – Aug. 16
Joseph Leonardo Clarke, a 27-year-old resident of Grove Place was shot and killed in downtown Frederiksted. At about 5:10 p.m. Aug. 16, the 911 Emergency Call Center received a report of shots fired at the corner of King Street and Market Street in downtown Frederiksted. Upon arrival, officers observed an unresponsive man identified as Clarke with gunshot wounds to the body.

STX – 18
Territory – 35
Date of death – Aug. 17
At roughly 9:58 p.m. Aug. 17 the 911 emergency call center received reports of gunshots in Sion Farm, and officers were dispatched to the location. Arriving at the scene, officers found two male gunshot victims. One victim was transported by ambulance to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital for treatment. As of Tuesday morning he was listed in serious but stable condition. Emergency Medical Technicians on the scene found no vital signs on the second victim, identified as as 16-year-old Tintawe Christian of Sion Farm.

STT – 17
Territory – 36
Date of death – Sept. 13
At about 2:10 p.m. Sept. 13, the 911 emergency call center received a report of multiple shots fired in the Oswald Harris Court housing community, in the vicinity of the basketball court. Officers found an unresponsive Black male, later identified as Secori Akeel Elmes, age 31, who sustained multiple gunshot wounds about his body. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded he had no signs of life.

STX – 19
Territory – 37
Date of death – Sept. 13
At 3:09 p.m. the 911 emergency call center received a report of a female in a vehicle on the Melvin Evans Highway, who possibly had suffered a gunshot wound. Upon arrival, officers found a black Acura TSX in the westbound lane of the highway, just east of the Estate Paradise stoplights, with the gunshot victim inside. The victim, later identified by next of kin as Renyisha Juanita Rivera, was pronounced dead by medical technicians on the scene.

STX – 20
Territory – 38
Date of death – Oct. 9
21-year-old Kadiyen Illidge of Sion Hill was killed and four people injured in a shooting in Frederiksted on St. Croix. At 10:18 p.m., the 911 emergency call center received multiple reports from concerned citizens of shots fired near the corner of King and Market Streets in downtown Frederiksted. Officers traveled to the location, where they found an adult female, later identified by next of kin as Illidge, with a gunshot wound to the head. She was transported to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries. Police said they believed Illidge had been a bystander who had been caught in the crossfire. In the ensuing hour four individuals arrived at the hospital with gunshot wounds. Three had been injured at the Corner Pocket in Estate Kingshill, and the fourth while walking in nearby Estate Smithfield.

STX – 21
Territory – 39
Date of death – Oct. 16
At about 11:09 p.m. the 911 emergency call center received reports of shots fired near an establishment in William’s Delight. Officers traveled to the area to investigate and found an unresponsive adult male with gunshot wounds on the ground. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded that the victim had no vital signs. The victim was identified by family members as Olson Tyson of Mount Pleasant Apartments.

STT – 18
Territory – 40
Date of death – Oct. 24
At 4:36 a.m. the 911 emergency call center dispatched officers to the Four Winds Plaza shopping center in reference to shots fired. Officers traveled to the area and found an unresponsive Black male lying in the shopping center’s parking lot. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded the male, later identified as 29-year-old Joseph Andrews, had no signs of life. Officers were also notified of four gunshot victims at the Schneider Regional Medical Center. The victims told police they had all been all at Four Winds Plaza when the shooting occurred, but all said they had no knowledge of who fired the shots.

STX – 21
Territory – 41
Date of death – Oct. 31
At about 8:20 p.m. the 911 Emergency Call Center received reports of shots being fired in Concordia West on St. Croix. At the scene, police were told a dark-colored car drove up in the Concordia Manor neighborhood and fired shots, striking a Hispanic male victim, later identified by next of kin as 19-year-old Nathaniel Felix. He was transported to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital by private vehicle for treatment, but later died from his injuries.

STX – 22
Territory – 42
Date of death – Nov. 1
At 2:28 p.m. Nov. 1, officers responded to a reported gunshot victim at a residence in Catherine’s Hope, Christiansted. At the scene, officers discovered an unresponsive, Black male who was shot in the back. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded the man, later identified as Bomani K. Christian, had no signs of life. The investigation revealed Christian was assaulted by two, unidentified, Black males who left the area in a dark maroon SUV.

STJ – 2
Territory – 43
Date of death – Nov. 18
At about 12:05 a.m., the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots fired in Estate Enighed. Officers traveled to the scene and found an unresponsive male who appeared to have sustained multiple gunshot wounds to his body. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded that the male did not have any vital signs. The victim was later identified by next of kin as 20-year-old A’Jahnie Bramble.
Officers then learned that two other individuals received gunshot wounds in the incident, and were being treated at the Myra Keating Clinic.

STX – 23
Territory – 44
Date of death – Nov. 30
At about 1:19 p.m. the 911 emergency call center received a report of shots fired and someone calling for help on Queen Mary Highway, near Estate Whim. Officers traveled to the area and discovered an unresponsive Black male and a wounded Caucasian male, both suffering from gunshot wounds. The Caucasian male was transported to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital or treatment, where he was listed in stable condition as of 6 p.m. Nov, 30. Police did not release his name in accordance with department policy. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded that the Black male, subsequently identified as Jakari Charles, did not have any vital signs.

STX – 24
Territory – 45
Date of death – Dec. 27
At about 6:01 p.m. the 911 emergency call center received reports of shots fired on Fisher Street, Frederiksted, at the Fish Market. Officers traveled to the area and found an adult Black male on the ground with gunshot wounds. The victim was transported to the Gov. Juan F. Luis Hospital via ambulance, where he later succumbed to his injuries. The victim was identified by next of kin as 25-year-old Jahmandi Simon.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Keeping our community informed is our top priority.
If you have a news tip to share, please call or text us at 340-228-8784.

Support local + independent journalism in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as accessible as we can. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. We know that informed communities are empowered ones. If you appreciate our reporting and want to help make our future more secure, please consider donating.

1 COMMENT

UPCOMING EVENTS

UPCOMING EVENTS