Men From Grenada And Dominica Sentenced To 18 Months In Prison For Smuggling Illegal Immigrants Into Territory

ST. THOMAS — District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez on Monday sentenced Kenrick Christopher, 48, of Grenada, to 23 months in prison, and Jeard Shillingford, 33, of Dominica, to 18 months in prison for encouraging and inducing illegal immigrants to enter the United States for commercial or financial gain, United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced. Judge Gomez also sentenced both men to serve three years of supervised release.

On June 24, 2015, Christopher and Shillingford pleaded guilty to encouraging and inducing illegal immigrants to enter the United States for commercial or financial gain. As part of their pleas, Christopher and Shillingford admitted to operating a sailing vessel containing 61 Haitian nationals seeking to enter the United States illegally, and that they did so for commercial or financial gain knowing that their actions were unlawful. The United States Coast Guard and U.S. Customs and Border Protection intercepted the vessel off the coast of St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands on June 10, 2015.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney David White.