KINGSHILL— Keithley Jones, 54, pleaded guilty to first degree unlawful sexual contact on the morning that jury selection was set to begin at Superior Court in Kingshill on Friday, Virgin Islands Attorney General Gordon C. Rhea said today.
The charges stemmed from his sexual abuse of a child under the age of 13 between 2019 and 2022.
Jones had been charged with first-degree aggravated rape, first-degree unlawful sexual contact and child abuse.
Jones faces a potential sentence of up to fifteen years in prison and will be sentenced by the court following the completion of a presentence report by the Office of Probation.
Keithley Jones, 54, of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands Police said in a sworn affidavit that the girl told officers that Jones did not penetrate her, but often performed oral sex on her, and began touching her inappropriately from as early as age 9. She told police she learned his actions were wrong from a discussion on rape in a health class at her school.
“Jones will also be required to register as a sex offender,” the VIDOJ said in a prepared statement. “Due to the need to respect the privacy of the victim and their family, additional details of the crime are not being disclosed.”
Attorney General Rhea expressed gratitude to all those involved for their dedication and hard work, including prosecutors Jasmine Griffin, Esq. and Robert Pickett, Esq., Assistant Attorneys General from the St. Croix Criminal Division of the V.I. Department of Justice, as well as the Litigation and Victim Services Teams, particularly Juliet John-Hope. AG Rhea also thanked the Virgin Islands Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Bureau for their thorough investigation of the case.
