ST. CROIX — A man was shot in the leg during a reported armed robbery in the Coakley Bay area Thursday night, October 15, and transported by ambulance to Juan F. Luis Hospital, according to an incident notification obtained by The Consortium.
According to the notification, later confirmed by VIPD Director of Communications Glen Dratte, a woman called St. Croix 911 around 10:15 p.m. to report that two men dressed in black had robbed her boyfriend at gunpoint and shot him in the leg. The suspects fled on foot in an unknown direction.
Responding units were at the scene when the notification was issued, and the case remained active at that time. The notice did not identify what was stolen or provide information about the victim's condition.
The shooting follows several armed incidents reported on St. Croix in recent weeks, including a jewelry-store robbery in Christiansted and a home invasion in which a woman was held at gunpoint.
On October 1, police said a machete-wielding man robbed Sonya’s Fine Island Jewelry on Company Street at approximately 2:30 p.m. Officers arrested 47-year-old Andrew Joseph less than two hours later and recovered stolen property. The Consortium’s subsequent court-based reporting detailed allegations that approximately $20,000 in jewelry, along with cash and employees’ devices, had been taken.
On September 25, a woman reported at approximately 12:13 a.m. that a masked man dressed entirely in black entered her home, held her at gunpoint and escaped with personal belongings. VIPD Director of Communications Glen Dratte confirmed the account to The Consortium.
Earlier, two masked gunmen robbed Yum Yum restaurant in Peters Rest shortly after midnight on September 12. The men held an employee at gunpoint and fled with an undisclosed amount of money. The employee was unharmed.
The incidents have occurred against a backdrop of police efforts to address burglaries and robberies on the island. In July, VIPD warned of increased commercial burglaries and home invasions after nine break-ins were reported in a single day, mostly in La Grande Princesse.
At a September 28 briefing, Police Commissioner Mario Brooks said an ongoing 90-day enforcement initiative had resulted in several arrests and the detention of persons of interest. He said intensified patrols and special operations deployments would continue through the Crucian Christmas Festival season and longer if necessary. Police subsequently attributed the rapid response to the Sonya’s robbery to the interagency effort targeting robberies and burglaries.
