Mugshot of Angel Guerrero. Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT
ST. THOMAS — The V.I. Police Department has arrested a man on charges of illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition, among other offenses.
According to V.I.P.D. Director of Communications Glen Dratte, on Saturday, September 3, the Special Operations Bureau received information from the VIPD Intel Unit that a possible shooting was going to take place in the area of the Regjerins Gade Friendly's Bar in Savan.
At 4:59 p.m. that day, officers arrived and inspected the surrounding area and noticed two individuals fitting the description of the information that they received.
Upon making contact with these persons of interest, they both fled the area on foot, according to police. One discarded his firearm underneath a vehicle, however the firearm was recovered and the man was swiftly placed under arrest after being captured.
The suspect, 21-year-old Angel Guerrero was found in possession of a high-capacity magazine in the firearm that was recovered, along with a Glock 17-9mm that was outfitted with a chip to make it an automatic handgun.
Guerrero was arrested and charged with illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition, possession of a high-capacity magazine, illegal ammunition, and possession of a modified gun to be an automatic handgun, according to the police department.
Unable to make bail of $100,000, Guerrero was remanded to the Bureau of Corrections pending his advisement hearing.
“Officers from the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs and VIPD’s S.O.B teams quickly formulated a plan of action and converged [on] the area,” stated S.O.B Commander Lt. Gregory Penn.
Commander Penn further stated, “The Specials operations Bureau is a unit that attends local functions, carnival, king of the wings, local basketball tournaments and community events with the safety of the community as its first responsibility. When we are not engaged in those activities, we are in constant contact with concerned citizens and other arms of our community in reference to addressing the criminal element locally. At times we are mobilized by our Superiors along with other law enforcement agencies for missions where we focus on extremely dangerous persons whose only intent is to take advantage of our most exposed and vulnerable."
The V.I.P.D. is asking anyone with information about this matter to call (340-774-2211), 911 or the Criminal Investigation Bureau Major Crimes Division at 340-642-8449. You can also send an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers USVI here.
