CHRISTIANSTED — The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) is requesting any information regarding the early morning fire at the Stop & Save Food Market in St. Croix on April 30.
The ATF is also interested in the May 8th fire at St. Croix Trading also in the Mount Welcome area of Christiansted.
Each has been determined to have been intentionally set, according to the ATF.
And each busines additionally reported the theft of cash and other items of value before the fires, VIPD spokesman Glen Dratte said.
Evidence collected from the Stop & Save Food Market fire scene indicates that two or more people were involved and likely sustained light to severe burns from setting the fires.
The suspects involved would have had “a strong smell of gasoline, diesel fuel, or other flammable liquids on their bodies or clothing,” authorities said. Burnt, singed, or melted clothing is another indicator that someone was involved in the suspected act of arson.
If you know of anyone who has sustained burns, singed hair, burns or other injuries to their arms, legs, abdomen, face or neck between the dates of April 30 to May 8, please provide this information to the USVI Fire Marshal’s Office, or to Crime Stoppers VI at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.crimestroppersvi.org or www.P3tips.com.
In addition to the Crime Stopper USVI reward, an additional reward in the amount of $10,000 has been offered for each of these incidents by the ATF for information leading to an arrest in these arson fires.
Rumor is that the business wasn’t doing good so it was set a blaze to collect insurance money.
But the part that is not clear is why St.Croix trading was burnt down also when it is not the same owner, and they were doing very good.