KINGSHILL — A teen-age high school student has been jailed in connection to a St. Croix school bus driver’s beating on Wednesday afternoon, authorities said.
Caleave N. Mascall,18, was arrested and charged with third-degree assault, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.
On October 2, 2024, at approximately 2:47 p.m., 911 Emergency Call Center reported an assault on a school bus driver by students while dropping them in the Strawberry area, according to the VIPD.
VIPD mug shot of Caleave Nigel Mascall, 18, of St. Croix.
“As a result of the assault the school driver sustained visible injuries, also damages to the school bus were reported,” VIPD spokeswoman Kishma Chichester said. “During the investigation two minors and an adult student were identified as the aggressors in this matter.”
Mascall was transported to the Mars Hill police headquarters where he was advised of his Miranda Rights, booked and processed.
Bail for Mascall was set at $25,000.00. Unable to post bail, he was transferred to the custody of the Bureau of Corrections at the John A. Bell Adult Correctional Facility in Golden Grove.
He remains there pending an advice-of-rights hearing in Superior Court.
The two minors involved in this matter were turned over to the Juvenile Investigation Bureau, according to Chichester.
The two unnamed students were each arrested, booked and released to the custody of their parents pending a hearing in St. Croix’s Juvenile Court.
St. Croix’s Chief of Police, Sean Santos, expressed his thoughts about the violent incident.
“First and foremost, I want to thank the members of the juvenile unit and our school security bureau for their investigative work and the swift arrest for these students who assaulted the bus driver,
these actions are not tolerated within our community,” St. Croix Police Chief Santos said. “It is sad that we have to go down this road in arresting our young men in our community, but I think the horrific actions that were displayed on that video said it all as to why we had to do what we had to do.”
“I plead to the parents of the Virgin Islands community to pay attention to your young ones
our children, to ensure that these situations do not occur anymore to include violent acts
against their peers within the schools, the public transportation system is there for their safety
and ensuring that the students get to and from school. We have been a community who
always respected our elders and we need to bring that back. I hope these young men learned
their lesson as to their actions, and hopefully we can find a resolution in finding help for
them”, said Chief Santos.