CHRISTIANSTED — A chaotic scene unfolded at the First Bank in Orange Grove on Tuesday morning when police say Wingrove Creighton rammed his car into another vehicle, and that driver then fired two gunshots at Creighton’s vehicle.
The shooter was taken into custody and interviewed, but has not been arrested or charged with a crime, as first reported in the V.I. Daily News.
Creighton was arrested and charged with first-degree reckless endangerment, third-degree assault, destruction of property, reckless driving, and violation of the restriction on tinted glass windows in a vehicle.
Unable to post $30,000 bail, Creighton was jailed until his advice-of-rights hearing Wednesday morning.
The incident occurred Tuesday morning when police responded to the First Bank in Estate Orange Grove and interviewed Creighton and other witnesses about what had occurred.
The driver of a Ford Ranger told police he was at the drive-through ATM when a red Jeep Wrangler pulled up behind him and honked several times. The driver said he completed his transaction, drove forward, and stopped the vehicle again to secure his wallet, according to the affidavit.
The driver said the Jeep drove past the ATM and came up behind him again, honking, and “later struck the rear of his vehicle,” pushing it onto Northside Road, “into oncoming traffic,” according to the affidavit.
The driver said he had his foot on the brake but the Jeep kept pushing his vehicle into the road, and “multiple vehicles abruptly came to a stop in the roadway and turned to avoid colliding into his vehicle,” according to the affidavit.
The driver of the Ford Ranger said that “while his vehicle was being forced onto the Northside Road, he exited and retrieved his licensed firearm from his waist,” pointed it at the Jeep and ordered the driver to stop, according to the affidavit.
The driver of the Jeep, later identified as Creighton, initially complied. But then quickly reversed, striking the bank’s concrete wall and another vehicle, according to the affidavit.
The driver of the Ford Ranger said he could hear the Jeep’s engine still running, and “was unsure if the driver would continue the assault. At which time he discharged two rounds at the front end of the vehicle” and officers arrived on the scene, according to the affidavit.
The driver of the Ford Ranger “further stated that during this incident, he was in fear for his life,” according to the affidavit, and police have not arrested that individual or charged him with a crime.
Police also interviewed Creighton, who “stated that his foot got stuck between the brakes and gas pedal,” according to the affidavit.
In court Wednesday, Magistrate Judge Ernest Morris Jr. kept bail set at $30,000, but said Creighton may post $3,000 cash and sign an unsecured bond for the remaining $27,000. Creighton must also remain under the supervision of a third-party custodian while he awaits trial.