CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A Dominica native was arrested hiding in a gut at a housing project after first leading federal and local law enforcement authorities on a vehicular chase that ended with the suspects firing shots at officers. Some suspects remain at large after the incident.
The Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) officers of the Crime Suppression Unit along with the United States Marshals Service attempted to stop a heavily tinted Red Jeep Wrangler on Raphune Hill on Sunday about 1:44 a.m.
The vehicle refused to stop and led officers on a path of pursuit that encompassed the East End of St. Thomas from Raphune Hill to Brookman Road through the Bovoni and Bolongo area and ultimately came to a stop in the Oswald E. Harris Court housing project.
The suspects, while exiting the vehicle opened fire on the officers and fled the area.
During the pursuit, officers discovered Jamieson Jeffers, 28, whose last known address is Oswald Harris Court, Building 2 lying in a gut attempting to hide from police behind Building 9 of the housing project.
Jeffers was subsequently arrested and remanded to the custody of the Bureau of Corrections (BOC) pending an advice-of-rights hearing scheduled for today.
Jeffers is charged with third-degree assault, possession of stolen property, possession of ammunition, reckless endangerment, delaying/obstructing, unauthorized use of a vehicle and illegal transfer of a license plate.
Newly-installed Police Commissioner Trevor Velinor told the V.I. Daily News that U.S. Marshals were involved with the VIPD in the operation because local police are “forming partnerships, building trust and ultimately working together for the safety of the community.”
This is not Jeffers’ first tangle with the law in St. Thomas. He was arrested and charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm in 2009.
The Roseau native was also arrested and charged with destruction of property in 2014 in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
On Facebook, Jeffers said that he is an “entrepreneur” from Grand Bay, Dominica.
Anyone having any information about this or any other crime is asked to please contact the Virgin Islands Police Department at (340) 774-2211, Major Crime Unit at (340) 714-9830 or the Criminal Investigation Bureau (340) 714-9807.
You can also contact Crime Stoppers at 1-(800) 222-8477 or 911.
“We need your help and the entire community’s involvement,” VIPD spokesman Karl Caesar said.
