John McCarthy
By JOHN McCARTHY / V.I. Free Press News Reporter
KINGSHILL — It was a hectic day at the St. Croix Superior Court on Wednesday as Judge Yolan C. Brow Ross presided over a heavy criminal docket featuring some of the island’s most notorious recent headlines. From high-profile service station homicides to bizarrely ironic courthouse crashes, here is who stood before the bench on July 15, 2026:
The Sion Farm Gas Station Homicide
Brian Schooler (Case No. SX-2026-CR-00153)
- The Charges: First-Degree Murder, First-Degree Assault, Reckless Endangerment, and Discharging or Aiming a Firearm.
- The Background: Appearing for his formal arraignment, licensed firearm owner Brian Schooler (listed as a “Junior” on initial court filings) faces the ultimate charge following the June 26, 2026, fatal shooting of 50-year-old Pedro Melendez Sanes. The incident, which unfolded at the WMJR Service Gas Station near Sion Farm, triggered a massive police response after ShotSpotter notifications alerted emergency dispatchers to multiple rounds being fired. Schooler was apprehended on-scene and has been held on a $1,000,000 bail.
From Wheelchairs to Metal Crutch Assaults
Warren Freeman (Case No. SX-2026-CR-00122)
- The Charges: Third-Degree Assault, Aggravated Assault and Battery, Disturbance of the Peace, and Interfering with an Officer.
- The Background: Freeman returned to court for a status conference following his highly publicized May 4, 2026, arrest at the Oriental Bank in Estate Diamond. According to police reports, Freeman refused officers’ orders to leave the bank premises; when confronted, Freeman rose from his wheelchair and violently struck a responding VIPD officer in the face with a metal hand crutch, inflicting an open laceration.
- Archival History: This is not Freeman’s first high-stakes run-in with law enforcement. In September 2022, a naked Freeman was arrested in Clifton Hill after allegedly ramming a VIPD cruiser with a rental Jeep and driving directly at officers, which prompted police to open fire on the vehicle.
The Ultimate Courthouse Irony
Megan Smith (Case No. SX-2026-CR-00152)
- The Charges: Driving Under the Influence (DUI) and Negligent Driving.
- The Background: In what court observers are calling a classic display of brazen irony, Smith was arraigned Wednesday on DUI charges originating from court grounds. On June 26, 2026, Smith allegedly sped into the Superior Court parking lot for a mandatory probation check-in, ignored marshals’ warnings, and crashed her vehicle into a parked car. Responding deputy marshals discovered Smith slurring her words, smelling of alcohol, and carrying an open bottle of liquor.
The Lorraine Village Double-Shooting
Jahnigh Gonsalves (Case No. SX-2026-CR-00156)
- The Charges: First-Degree Attempted Murder and Third-Degree Assault.
- The Background: Arraigned on attempted murder charges, 22-year-old Gonsalves surrendered to authorities on June 30, 2026, after a frantic multi-day manhunt. Gonsalves is accused of opening fire on his brother and his brother’s girlfriend inside the Lorraine Village Housing Community after the couple called 911 to have him evicted from their residence.
- Archival History: Gonsalves previously made police blotters in late 2024 when a VIPD traffic stop on Limetree Bay Terminal Road uncovered a loaded “ghost gun” equipped with an illegal automatic sear switch in his backpack.
The Home Depot AC Heist
Elroy Tonge (Case No. SX-2026-CR-00163)
- The Charges: Grand Larceny.
- The Background: Tonge appeared for a status hearing following his July 13, 2026, arrest. Police caught Tonge driving a pickup truck loaded with stolen air conditioning units taken from Home Depot. Tonge claimed an unknown individual named “Mr. Joel” hired him to transport the items, but surveillance footage placed Tonge inside the store during the theft.
- Archival History: Tonge’s rap sheet includes a May 2024 arrest for domestic violence and choking, as well as a 2016 arrest during “Operation Clean Sweep” for unauthorized possession of a firearm.
