The Henry E. Rohlsen Airport on St. Croix
ST. CROIX — A man was arrested and charged after an angry outburst at the airport included threats to kill Customs and Border Protection Officers.
According to court documents, Jamoi Weekes and his girlfriend arrived at the Henry Rohlsen Airport on St. Croix on the evening of Friday, August 31, in order to catch his Silver Airlines flight to Puerto Rico. After checking in, he proceeded through security and was referred to secondary inspection because officials had become aware of a protective order that had been filed against him. CBP officers said they needed to ensure that Mr. Weekes was not traveling with the same person who had filed the order against him. Additionally, an agricultural inspection was warranted since Mr. Weekes had indicated that he was traveling with tobacco.
The would-be traveler left his bags with the agricultural officer, and began to question why he was being asked to fill out a customs declaration form. After officers also asked whether he had a warrant out for his request, Mr. Weekes reportedly became irate, screaming and shouting at the two CBP officials in the room with him. The commotion drew the attention of a supervisor, who came in to observe the proceedings.
Mr. Weekes admitted that he had been charged with a gun crime four years ago, but continued to express his anger, allegedly threatening to kill officers if he saw them on the street. He reportedly then tore up the declaration form, at which point the CBP officials determined that it would not be safe to allow him to board his flight. “This is why my generation don’t like law enforcement,” he is reported to have shouted, alongside threats that he would be back on Wednesday “an ayo goin’ see!”
Having been requested to provide assistance, several Port Authority officers also responded to the scene. Mr. Weekes reportedly continued his belligerent behavior, telling one officer that he was going to die, and threatening to kill all police.
Denied boarding, Mr. Weekes sat on an airport bench near the American Airlines counter until the CBP officers left the terminal after their shift. The angry man reportedly followed them into the parking lot and continued to make threatening statements, at one time challenging one of the officers to a fight. When that did not turn into the confrontation he apparently was seeking, he reportedly began making comments about the make and model of the officers’ personal vehicles.
On September 9, Mr. Weekes was arrested by a FBI special agent and charged with threats to murder federal law enforcement officers with intent to impede, intimidate, or interfere with such law enforcement officers while engaged in their official duties.
District Magistrate Alan Teague ordered that Mr. Weekes be released from detention ahead of trial after posting an unsecured bond of $25,000. He must avoid contact with all CBP and VIPA officers and stay away from the Henry Rohlsen airport. He is also restricted from alcohol, controlled substances, firearms, ammunition, and dangerous weapons while the case is pending. The judge also ordered that Mr. Weekes abide by a daily 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, with location monitoring technology employed to track his movements.
