From left to right, mugshots of Jaegan James Thomas and Felipe Felix. Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT
ST. CROIX — Two men appeared before a V.I. Superior Court judge on Wednesday following a Kmart heist that was caught on camera, where one of the two was seen stealing construction tools.
Jaegan James Thomas and Felipe Felix were both recently arrested on charges of grand larceny. Thomas was also slapped with a charge of simple possession of a controlled substance.
Their arrest follows a report made on October 18 to the 911 Emergency Call Center of a possible larceny at one of the Kmart outlets.
On arrival to the scene, contact was made with one of the managers at Kmart. According to the probable cause fact sheet, the Asset Protection manager stated that after reviewing the surveillance footage that morning, he observed a baldheaded, dark-skinned male, later identified as Jaegan Thomas, wearing a light, brown colored shirt, green camouflage cargo shorts and white sneakers, enter the establishment. He said the individual headed straight to the hardware section, placed four tool kits into a shopping cart — a Craftsman ultimate socket set and three Craftsman mechanic tool sets. The tool sets had a combined value of $1761.46.
Soon after, Thomas was observed walking directly out of the establishment without paying for the tools. The Asset Protection manager was also notified by the store manager that Thomas left the store with the items that were not paid for. The Asset Protection manager immediately ran to the main entrance/exit to make contact with Thomas, but the driver of the vehicle that Thomas entered drove off. Thomas left in a silver GMC Envoy which was operated by a Hispanic male later identified as Felipe Felix.
Police made contact with the store manager who said that she was cashing at the register when she observed a tall, slim built black man — who she recognized from a prior incident of stealing — exit the store with the shopping cart, full of items which she knew were not paid for since she was the only cashier at the time. She immediately notified the Asset Protection manager as she advanced towards the main entrance to keep a visual of Thomas. The Asset Protection manager immediately came running to assist and chased after Thomas, but Thomas entered the GMC Envoy and left the area.
Based on prior knowledge of both individuals and the vehicle involved, police traveled to Profit Hills to conduct a follow-up investigation. While there, they observed a male individual which matched the description provided by the managers, walking in the area. Contact was made with the individual who identified himself as Jaegan Thomas. He admitted to taking the items from Kmart without paying for them and further stated, “I can’t take the fall by myself,” and went on to tell police that Felipe Felix should have the items at his residence.
While conducting a search of Thomas’s person, police found a small plastic vial containing a white powdery substance which later tested positive for cocaine.
Police traveled to Felix’s residence and observed the vehicle described by both complainants. Police conducted a visual inspection of the vehicle and observed the Craftsman Ultimate Socket Set in the trunk of the vehicle in plain view. Shortly after, contact was made with Felix, who stated that he was only passing in the area to assist Thomas, his friend, by giving him a ride. Thomas and Felix were placed under arrest. Thomas said that both he and Felix planned to travel to the Kmart outlet, but Felix wanted the tools to sell so they carried out the act.
In court on Wednesday, the judge ruled that both men, with the assistance of their third-party custodians, needed to post an unsecured bond of $20,000 each to secure their release. They are barred from leaving St. Croix without the court’s written permission and must surrender their passports if they have one. They must commence a work search, report to the Office of Probation once weekly and abide by a 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. curfew. They are to have no contact, directly or indirectly, with victims or witnesses in this matter.
The men are also barred from entering any Kmart outlet on St. Croix while the matter is pending.
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