Two men charged with Wednesday’s stabbing death of 51-year old Hull Bay resident Dennis Richardson and the rape of an unidentified 29-year-old woman at Mandahl Bay beach were ordered detained without bail Thursday until a detention hearing decides their pretrial fates.
Tutu resident Katanio Peets, 37, and Mariendahl resident Jensen Alexander, 29, face a maximum sentence of life in prison without the chance of parole for the charge of first degree murder, Superior Court Judge Alan D. Smith told the two men Thursday as he advised them of their rights.
Peets, who also goes by the name of “Kay Kay,” is also charged with assault, a weapons charge, and for aiding and abetting Alexander in the alleged knife-point rape.
Alexander, who was born in Yemen and who is also known by his street name “Joseniah,” also faces multiple rape and assault charges in addition to the first degree murder charge.
Neither man was employed and neither said he had made it further than eighth grade.
According to testimony by V.I. Police Major Crimes detective Cherese Thomas, Richardson and the unnamed rape victim were hanging out drinking beer and playing cards and dominoes at a camp on Mandahl Tuesday with Peets and Alexander, whom the woman said they had met earlier that day near Drakes Seat.
According to the woman – who remains the only witness to the alleged crimes – she and Richardson were later caught up in a scuffle between Alexander and Peets that eventually turned on Richardson when he came to her defense. Ironically, it was Alexander who later called police to report the alteration after his car window was broken.
Police testified that they responded to the call just after midnight on Wednesday morning, at which time they took a report and told everyone to go home. Peets and Alexander left, police said, but the woman and Richardson stayed, camping on the beach in a tent because they could not find the keys to Richardson’s truck. Police said on Wednesday that they had offered the two campers a ride home, but they declined.
While they slept, Alexander and Peets returned, police said.
The woman told police that she awoke inside the tent sometime after 2 a.m. with Alexander on top of her holding a serrated knife to her throat. She said she could see Peets pinning down Richardson on the ground outside.
While Peets held Richardson, Alexander raped her and beat her again and again, the woman told police.
Richardson appeared lifeless as she was raped, she said.
“Let the girl go,” she told police she heard Peets yell to Alexander as he raped her, according to court documents obtained by the Source. “Let’s go, man,” she recounted hearing Peets say. “I think he’s dead. I think we killed him.”
The woman said she eventually escaped through some bushes and hid in the water for more than an hour until she could run to a neighbor’s house for help.
When police arrived, they found Richardson dead, apparently stabbed multiple times on his left side. They found a knife at the scene.
The woman was later treated at Schneider Regional Medical Center and helped police identify Peets and Alexander by picking them out of police photos. The two had been previously charged with crimes ranging from robbery to assault. Police arrested them late Wednesday.
Judge Smith said that based on the witness’s statements Peets had said “we” in relation to killing Richardson, he agreed with prosecutors that each defendant should stand additional charges of aiding and abetting the other in each crime. He gave the prosecutor and counsel until Tuesday to clarify the standards for bail before he decides to set bail or not.
Friends mourned Richardson at Hull Bay, where he was a favorite among regulars there.
Peets, who stoically faced news that he could spend the rest of his life in prison Thursday, is the father of two children.
Alexander, who slouched, expressionless, in mangy dreadlocks and a braided beard to hear the charges against him, appeared to have been injured and raised a bandaged right hand to swear that he was telling the truth when he said he understood his rights as he faces trial for murder.
St. Thomas/St. John/Water Island Police Chief Rodney F. Querrard Sr. asks the public for any information about this case. Anyone with information can call Major Crime detectives at 715-5545, 715-5546, 642-8449 or the anonymous tip service Crime Stoppers USVI at 1-800-222-TIPS.