FREDERIKSTED — A St. Croix man faces illegal gun and ammunition charges after the car he was driving nearly collided with a police squad car in Estate Paradise on Saturday.
Omari Poree, 26, was arrested and charged with carrying of a firearm openly or
concealed, and possession of ammunition, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.
Officers with the Special Operations Bureau were on routine patrol on the Queen Mary Highway near the Paradise Road traffic light intersection when a red Nissan Altima almost collided with their marked police vehicle, according to the VIPD.
VIPD mugshot of Omari Poree, 26, of St. Croix.
“Officers conducted a traffic stop on the vehicle, which was operated by Mr. Omari Poree,” VIPD spokeswoman Kishma Chichester said.
While Poree was being interviewed by police, officers spotted what appeared to be the barrel of a
firearm sticking out from under the driver’s seat of the vehicle, according to Chichester.
Poree was asked if he has a firearm license for the firearm in his vehicle, in which he replied “no,” she said.
The firearm and ammunition were confiscated by officers and Poree was then placed under arrest, police said.
Bail for Poree was set at $50,000.00. Unable to post bail, he was remanded to the custody of the Bureau of Corrections pending an advice-of-rights hearing.
