ST. CROIX — United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced today that Damian Anthony Lang of St. Croix, a Dept. of Agriculture employee, was arrested Tuesday for the charge of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute cocaine. Lang was picked up by federal agents while working at the Dept. of Agriculture in Estate Lower Love, on Agricultural Fair Grounds. Many St. Croix residents had initially thought that the arrest was connected to the recent burglary at the Dept. of Agriculture, where more $12,000 in cash belonging the Agricultural Food Fair Board was stolen along with three checks totaling $27,000. D.O.A. Commissioner Positive Nelson said he believed the incident was an inside job.
According to court documents, Lang is accused of mailing two parcels from the USVI to Spartanburg, South Carolina on December 7, 2019. The parcels were intercepted and contained approximately 462 grams of a white powdery substance which field-tested positive for cocaine.
Lang was arraigned Tuesday in federal court on St. Croix and detention, preliminary and removal hearings were scheduled for today at 9:00 a.m. According to court documents, Lang is currently on release pending trial in an unrelated federal case, No. 2015-13, for the charge of felon in possession of ammunition.
The South Carolina case is investigated by Homeland Security Investigations, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, United States Postal Inspection Service, and the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Melissa P. Ortiz and Alphonso Andrews in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert reminds the public that a criminal complaint is merely a formal charging document and is not evidence of guilt. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
Advertisements
