Mugshot of William Wilson Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT
ST. THOMAS — A retired man has been arrested after law enforcement discovered 1.91 kilograms of marijuana in his luggage.
William Wilson is charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute.
According to police, he was detained at the Cyril E. King Airport on Thursday afternoon, following his arrival from Charlotte, North Carolina. Upon a search of the passenger’s luggage, Customs and Border Protection Officers discovered several black, vacuum sealed bags. Law enforcement say several days before Wilson’s arrival, they were notified by the airline that they were in possession of a rush bag that needed to be searched. Rush bags are pieces of luggage which are not accompanied by a passenger. It is reported that while conducting the search of that bag, officers discovered the same type of black packages along with a prescription bottle with Wilson's name on it. Wilson’s name was subsequently flagged based on the discovery of that bottle. After making a small incision in one of the vacuum sealed bags, officers extracted a green leafy substance which later tested positive for marijuana. William was placed under arrest and turned over to the Bureau of Corrections until his advisement hearing on Friday morning.
During Friday’s proceedings, Wilson was asked several times to state his name for the record, but to no avail. Instead, he responded first by stating his mother’s name and then his grandmother's name. However, his identity was confirmed by his two brothers who were present via Zoom.
Despite the Judge’s efforts to ask Wilson whether he understood the charges against him, the defendant appeared preoccupied with his bail amount, asking about the $7,500 figure and expressing concern over how he would come up with the sum.
Noting Wilson’s lack of direct responses to his questions, Judge Henry Carr asked the defendant “Are you alright? Are you suffering from some medical or mental health condition?” Though Wilson did not respond to these questions, the Judge continued by asking “Are you on drugs or controlled substances?”
Public Defender Julie Todman noted that earlier in the day she was able to communicate with Wilson and that he had identified himself to her. Given that Wilson was able to clearly state the amount in which his bail was set at the time of his arrest, the Judge stated that he appeared to be of sufficient mental capacity for the proceedings to continue. Throughout the proceedings, Wilson kept speaking about his bail amount and did not answer any questions from the Judge, despite efforts by his brothers to coax him into responding.
As the hearing continued, Assistant Attorney General Brenda Scales noted that Wilson, who has been retired for the last 7 years, was born in New York and currently resides in Florida. He previously lived in St. John for some 33 years. Apart from one prior arrest for possession of marijuana in 1963, Wilson has no other criminal record.
Bail for Wilson was set at $7,500 to be paid in cash or property, and with no provision to post 10 percent of set sum.
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