Mugshot of Kai Cuencas. Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
ST. CROIX — A resident of St. Croix who has an outstanding warrant in Nacogdoches County, Texas, is now held at the John Bell Correctional Facility after approaching the V.I. Police Department to facilitate his voluntary surrender. The fugitive, Kai Cuencas, is currently awaiting transfer.
On September 14, VIPD officers were alerted to a complaint in which Cuencas said that there was a warrant for his arrest in the state of Texas. Officers immediately contacted the National Crime Information Center to verify his claim, and confirmed that there was an active warrant for aggravated sexual assault.
After further confirmation with the Nacogdoches Sheriff Department, police contacted Cuencas on the telephone number he had supplied. According to documents before the court, the fugitive told them that he “just needs to be picked up so that he can deal with the warrant.”
Cuencas reportedly made arrangements to meet with officers at a fast food outlet in La Reine. When police arrived, he identified himself, providing a Virgin Islands voter registration card as proof of his identity. He was subsequently arrested and charged with being a fugitive from justice, and remanded to the Bureau of Corrections to await his first court hearing.
During his advice of rights hearing on September 18, Magistrate Ernest Morris Jr. was informed that Cuencas intended to waive extradition proceedings. He ordered that Cuencas be held until a status conference scheduled for October 16, during which time the state of Texas is expected to prepare for Cuencas’s extradition.
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