Two men who have been in the custody of the V.I. Bureau of Corrections for 10 months were rearrested Friday, and the charges they face were upgraded from attempted murder to first-degree murder, the V.I. Police Department said.
Calijah Brewley and Jiovoni Smith, both age 21, have been held in the May 15, 2020, shooting in Estate Paradise on St. Croix that eventually claimed the life of 19-year-old Selena Chitolie.
Bail for Brewley and Smith was set at $500,000 each. Unable to post bail, both men were returned to the custody of the Bureau of Corrections, pending their advice of rights hearings.
Chitolie was a 19-year old woman who was one of two injured in the shooting and died of her wounds, the V.I. Police Department reported.
The shooting took place in the vicinity of Evelyn Williams Elementary School.
According to the V.I. Police Department, 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. Officers arrived at 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.
Brewley and Smith were arrested later that day.
The VIPDS announced Chitolie’s death in a May 27, 2020, news release.
