ST. CROIX — Calijah Brewley has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for the murder of 19-year-old Selena Chitolie, who was shot while traveling with her mother and younger brother as they searched for a rental home on St. Croix in May 2020. Her mother was also wounded in the shooting.
V.I. Superior Court Judge Alphonso Andrews Jr. imposed the sentence on October 8, 2026, following Mr. Brewley's guilty plea to second-degree murder on May 6, 2024. The sentencing came more than two years after his plea agreement, according to an October 16 announcement from the V.I. Department of Justice.
The shooting occurred on May 15, 2020, as Ms. Chitolie and her family traveled through Estate Paradise in the Mount Pleasant area of Frederiksted, near the former Evelyn M. Williams Elementary School. The family was searching for a rental home when gunmen opened fire on their vehicle.
According to the police account previously reported by V.I. Consortium, the suspects were traveling in a silver Ford Focus, while Ms. Chitolie, her mother, Nissa Camacho, and her younger brother were in a white Chevrolet. Investigators said the gunmen opened fire before fleeing on foot. The boy was not struck by gunfire.
Ms. Chitolie, who was driving, sustained a gunshot wound to the back of her neck. Her mother, seated in the front passenger seat, was also shot in the neck. Ms. Chitolie was airlifted for medical treatment but died from her injuries nearly two weeks later. According to the Department of Justice, Ms. Camacho continues to carry a bullet fragment from the shooting.
Mr. Brewley and co-defendant Jiovani Smith were initially arrested on May 15, 2020, and charged with attempted murder and other offenses. They remained in custody, and on March 19, 2021, police formally re-arrested both men after upgrading the charges to first-degree murder following Ms. Chitolie's death.
Mr. Brewley subsequently accepted a plea agreement offered by then-DOJ Criminal Chief Amie Simpson, pleading guilty to second-degree murder in May 2024.
Mr. Smith also pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to 30 years in prison in September 2024. During that sentencing proceeding, members of Ms. Chitolie's family addressed the court, and prosecutors detailed the circumstances of the shooting.
The case also involved Jerome Wallace III and Maynard Caliquan, who was a minor at the time of the incident. According to the Department of Justice's latest announcement, a motion to dismiss the charges against Mr. Wallace has been filed, but the court has not yet ruled on it. The department did not provide an update on Mr. Caliquan's case.
Mr. Brewley's 25-year sentence, imposed October 8, follows Mr. Smith's 30-year sentence in the same killing.
