CHRISTIANSTED — A second St. Croix man has been arrested in connection to a Castle Coakley shooting in January that left two teens dead and a third victim wounded.
Ricardo Richards, 25, was arrested today and charged with first-degree murder, first-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault, carrying or using a dangerous weapon during the commission of a crime of violence and unauthorized possession of a firearm, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.
“This case stems from the January 17, 2022, murders of Odonnie Heywood and Jah’ny Ledesma both 17-years-old, who were shot multiple times while driving through Old Castle Coakley,” Chief Detective Lieutenant Naomi Joseph said. “They were stopped and approached by Cornelius and Richards who were both heavily armed, Cornelius with a handgun and Richards with a high-powered rifle.”
Richards was taken into official custody by the CIB Detectives today.
“There were also similarly armed individuals on top of the two-story building in the area, and they all opened fire on the vehicle containing two minors and the adult driver,” Lieutenant Joseph explained. “We collected over two hundred spent casings from the crime scene and the majority was from a high-powered rifle. Mr. Richards also sought medical attention for a gunshot wound that night, however claimed that he was shot at Thomas’s Bakery in Old Castle Coakley. The minors died instantly, and the adult survived from the multiple gunshot wounds that he sustained.”
The warrant was signed by Superior Court Magistrate Earnest Morris.
Richards was unable to post the $2.5 million bail and was remanded to the custody of the Bureau of Corrections at the John A. Bell Adult Correctional Facility pending an advice-of-rights hearing.
Ozanie Cornelius, 27, appeared in court Monday after being charged in connection with same January 17 shooting.
Anyone with information about these homicides is asked to please call the CIB Tip-line 340-778-4850, 340-712-6092, Crime Stoppers USVI at 1-800-222-8477 or 911.