Although no one was hurt, a shootout Tuesday at Kilroy Laundry and adjacent to the Inn at Tamarind Court hotel has residents worried and made at least one travel forum. Two people were arrested following the 3 p.m. incident. (See related link at story’s end.)
Such events are rare on St. John, but residents are concerned that the wave of similar incidents on St. Thomas and St. Croix will become prevalent in the island many people call Love City.
“They need to settle their disputes differently,” St. John Administrator Leona Smith said.
She said that if someone has a disagreement with a person that can’t be resolved peacefully, they should ask the police for help.
Smith said it was lucky no bystanders were hurt in the incident.
The shootout was a topic for discussion at Wednesday’s Community Integration Team meeting, Chairman Linda Beckstein said.
“It’s a sad thing for St. John, but it’s good they solved it very quickly,” Beckstein said, noting that the police have recently made several other arrests on St. John.
She said that the Community Integration Team doesn’t have any programs pending to address any threat like this one.
According to Smith, the community is responding to the island’s growing crime problem. St. John Deputy Police Chief Darren Foy agreed.
“Once again I would like to thank the general public for providing the information that led to the arrests of the individuals involved in this shooting that could have severely hurt many individuals. It goes to show that the police department and public working together will always bring about positive results,” he said.
The travel forum www.virgin-islands-on-line.com indicated that “shots fired midafternoon in tourist area.” The description overstates the location because it’s several blocks out of the Cruz Bay restaurant and shopping area. However, the Inn at Tamarind Court hotel is adjacent to the laundry.
Police arrested Aswad Pickering, 25, of Estate Enighed and Arthur Hercules, 24, of Estate Carolina, at about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday. They were charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, illegal discharge of a firearm and third degree assault.
Witnesses told police that two people were firing shots at each other. Based on the descriptions of the suspects and the reports of ongoing feuds between the suspects, police searched several locations they were known to frequent. The suspects were eventually located in Pine Peace and arrested without incident.
Bail for both Pickering and Hercules was set at $60,000 each and they were remanded to the Bureau of Corrections pending further court action.