CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Two St. Thomas men face federal charges after they were arrested last month for allegedly carjacking two women at gunpoint in Havensight, authorities said.
Jahvid Alexander, 20, of Charlotte Amalie and Jestus Francis, 18, of Charlotte Amalie were arrested on June 23 and charged with numerous local crimes in the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands.
United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert for the District of the Virgin Islands announced today that an information was filed on July 22 charging Alexander and Francis with federal and territorial offenses, including conspiracy, carjacking, robbery, drug possession, and brandishing a firearm during a crime of violence.
According to the information and other court documents, on June 23 at approximately 11:00 p.m., two female victims reported an armed carjacking.
Virgin Islands Police Department officers responded, obtained a description of the car and immediately directed police units to follow the suspected stolen vehicle.
The vehicle and a blue Ford truck were observed traveling on Nadir Hill, a dead end road. Officers positioned themselves at that location and approximately 20 minutes later, the blue Ford truck was instructed by officers to pull over.
The two suspects were located in the truck, along with stolen property from the victims, the keys belonging to the stolen car, two black masks, a loaded firearm, and other items linking the suspects to the offense.
The stolen vehicle was located a short distance away.
Video surveillance of the Havensight area, from which the car was stolen, shows the blue truck minutes before the crime circling and turning into the parking lot where the victims were located.
A detention hearing for Alexander is scheduled for Monday and for Francis on Wednesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Ruth Miller.
Alexander was the passenger in a vehicle police asked to pull over for a routine traffic stop in late November of 2019, but it didn’t, according to the VIPD. The driver fled on foot leaving 19-year-old Alexander in the car with marijuana, a firearm with an obliterated serial number and ammunition.
He was charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm with an obliterated serial number, possession of controlled substance with intent to distribute and unlawful possession of ammunition in connection to that Solberg Road-Westbay Supermarket incident eight months ago.
United States Attorney Shappert reminds the public that an information is merely a formal charging document and is not evidence of guilt.
Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
The case is being investigated by the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).