CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A convicted felon who was arrested Wednesday by the VIPD will now be prosecuted by the federal government on illegal gun possession charges, authorities said.
Kenan Thomas, 32, of Hospital Ground has been named in a criminal complaint charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm, United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert for the District of the Virgin Islands said.
According to the affidavit filed in this case, on April 8, Thomas fled upon seeing officers investigating multiple shootings in the Hospital Ground area of St. Thomas. Thomas allegedly hid the black bags he had been carrying in a nearby residence, and those bags contained four different weapons, as well as ammunition.
According to court documents, Thomas allegedly possessed an AK-type 7.62mm pistol with an obliterated serial number; an AR-type pistol caliber
.223/5.56; a Glock .45 caliber handgun and a Glock 10mm. Thomas also allegedly possessed multiple magazines found with various ammunition.
Thomas, as a convicted felon, is prohibited by federal law from carrying firearms, as he was previously convicted of multiple felonies in Georgia.
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) and the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD).
It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Kyle Payne and
Nathan Brooks.
A criminal complaint is merely a charging document, and it is not in and of itself evidence of guilt, according to Shappert.
“Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law,” she said.