Mugshot of Leon Swan. By. THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT
ST. THOMAS — A man was arrested and charged after a police search of his apartment yielded firearms, ammunition, and Kevlar body armor.
On evening of March 13, police traveled to an apartment on Lillie Gade occupied by Leon Swan to execute a no-knock search warrant. According to documents submitted in court, they were looking for body armor, firearms, and components for firearms.
Once the Special Response Team had breached the front door and cleared the unit, detectives entered the bedroom to begin their search. In a dresser drawer, they found three black holsters, with two more holsters tucked away in a different drawer. On a chair in front of the dresser was a fifth holster, with a black Kevlar helmet and bullet-proof vest on the bed under a pile of clothing. One of the items was a black ski mask.
Under a different pile of clothes on the bed, police reportedly found a zippered plastic bag which contained a semi-automatic Taurus .380 pistol with a 12-round magazine, which was not completely full. The serial number on the weapon had been partially obliterated, police say. Another ski mask was found at the top of the bedroom closet.
Moving to the living room, detectives found another bullet proof vest on the loveseat. The entire operation lasted approximately 40 minutes.
The next day, Thursday March 14, police conducted a firearm record check which confirmed that Swan does not have a license to possess firearms or ammunition in the Virgin Islands, and thus he was arrested and charged with alteration of identifying marks of a weapon, unauthorized possession of a firearm, and possession or sale of ammunition.
He was remanded into custody to await his advice of rights hearing, which was scheduled for Friday. That same Thursday, charges of stalking, and illegal discharge of a firearm were also laid against Swan in a separate case, which also included three counts of disturbance of the peace by threats. Details of the circumstances leading up to those charges, however, have not yet been made publicly available as of press time, nor has the outcome of his advice of rights hearing.
