Mugshot of Nitta George. Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
ST. THOMAS — A woman was arrested after reportedly taking a friend's vehicle without permission and damaging it.
According to court documents, police in Cruz Bay, St. John were alerted to the incident on Tuesday evening, when a woman came to the Leander Jurgen Command police station to report her vehicle missing.
She said she had parked the vehicle at the Ferry Dock on St. Thomas as she usually does as part of her commute to work. While on the job, the woman was reportedly contacted by her friends, one of whom was Nitta George. They had also traveled to St. Thomas from St. John and wanted to wait in her vehicle.
The woman agreed, and gave them the keys, so that they could sit in the vehicle until she was done with work. Her shift had not yet finished when the woman said she received a call from George's phone. It was a male voice on the other end, one which she reportedly did not recognize. The man said the occupants of the vehicle were in an accident and damaged the windshield. He reportedly further disclosed that the vehicle may have hit somebody, but told the owner that those driving did not stop to check.
The woman, still on the clock, said that she was too overwhelmed and distressed to fully process what she had been told. It was when she left work that she realized that her vehicle had been taken without her permission. She called her mother for assistance and made her way back to St. John.
At the Jurgen Command, police say the vehicle's owner made several attempts to contact her friends, but neither answered. She subsequently received a call from her other friend's phone – not Ms. George's. Again, it was a male voice on the other end, who reportedly initially identified himself as a friend of Ms. George. However, when police identified themselves, the man quickly said he had found the phone and hung up immediately afterwards.
The woman told officers that the man's last known location was the Amalie Terrace area. Her father reportedly eventually tracked the vehicle down to that location.
Nitta George was arrested and charged with unauthorized use of a vehicle and tampering with a vehicle. She was remanded into custody and appeared before Magistrate Paula Norkaitis on Wednesday. The judge set bail at $25,000, but allowed her to post 10% of that sum in cash to secure her release from pre-trial detention.
Once released, Ms. George is required to surrender her travel documents and her learner's permit, and must stay at least 20 feet away from the alleged victim at all times. Her next court appearance is scheduled for October 24.
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