Mugshot of Danllerli Cabrera. Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT
ST. THOMAS — A man who left his vehicle in front of the Cyril E. King Airport until it was towed is now in legal hot water after police found a gun in the car.
Officers were dispatched to the airport on Monday morning after several unattended vehicles had accumulated in front of the Cyril E. King airport terminal. The drivers of the offending vehicles were tracked down and removed them from the area. Only a silver Toyota Corolla remained.
After making several unsuccessful inquiries with several airport employees about the driver, the car was ticketed and subsequently clamped. Over an hour passed with no sign of the driver, and thus police had the car towed to the nearby Port Authority impound lot. Noting a bag inside the vehicle, the wrecker operator asked for an officer to conduct an inspection and search of the Corolla.
Checking inside the bag, police found a black ski mask, black gloves, and a black firearm inside. The gun, which bore a serial number, was a Glock 22 .40 caliber handgun fitted with an extended magazine. Also in the back was a green leafy substance suspected to be marijuana.
Some time later, Danllerli Cabrera turned up at the Port Authority office on the second floor of the airport to inquire about his vehicle. He paid for it and then was taken to the impound lot by police. There, Cabrera reportedly opened the driver’s door of the Corolla with a key, but denied that the vehicle belonged to him when asked.
However, the black Coach bag inside the vehicle was his, Cabrera told police. The gun inside the bag was not, he insisted.
Without a valid firearm license in his name, Cabrera was arrested and charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm, possession of ammunition, and unsafe storage of a firearm in a vehicle.
Unable to pay the initial bail of $25,000, he was remanded into custody to await his first court appearance.
In court on Tuesday, Magistrate Simone VanHolten-Turnbull adjusted bail to include a cash component of $1000, which was paid. Further details of Cabrera’s pre-trial release requirements have not yet been made available to the public. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 22.
Advertisements
