CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A St. Thomas man is free after walking in to a police station and admitting that he stole two items of lawn care equipment from the Legislature building downtown last month, authorities said.
Kyle Francis Woods, 50, of no fixed address, was arrested at 10:50 a.m. Wednesday and charged with third-degree burglary, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.
“Woods turned himself in to police and admitted to burglarizing the Virgin Islands Legislature building on July 27 by removing lawn equipment from the premises,” VIPD spokesman Toby Derima said. “He was placed under arrest as a result.”
Woods allegedly stole “a weed eater and a bush clipper” from a storage room at the Legislature Building on the St. Thomas waterfront, according to Derima.
Woods was issued an Appearance Ticket on Wednesday to present himself at the Richard Callwood Command for an advice-of-rights hearing this morning, Derima said.
He could not be taken by the Bureau of Corrections to the St. Thomas jail at the Alexander A. Farrelly Justice Complex on Wednesday morning as the facility is no longer taking new inmates due to a COVID-19 outbreak there.
Woods was advised of his rights at 8 a.m. today by a Superior Court judge, who released him on his own recognizance, Derima told the Virgin Islands Free Press.
According to police records Woods was arrested by police on July 1, 2019 and charged with destruction of property.
Woods was also arrested by the VIPD on January 27, 2016 and charged with third-degree burglary.
Police said then that surveillance video showed him taking items from My Brother’s Workshop bakery on Norre Gade.
This current case is presently under active police investigation.
Anyone with any information regarding this crime is urged to contact 911, the Criminal Investigation Bureau at (340) 774-2211 extension 5579 or the paying anonymous tip line Crime Stoppers USVI at (800) 222-8477.