By JOHN McCARTHY / V.I. Free Press News Reporter
ST. CROIX — A 25-year-old St. Croix woman is behind bars and made her first appearance in local court on Wednesday, while her 49-year-old mother remains actively at large and wanted by the Virgin Islands Police Department.
The familial duo is accused of cornering and violently beating a female victim in the head and face last month.
The Incident & Arrest
According to police reports, the assault occurred on June 26, 2026, in the vicinity of Little Princess Hill. Investigators allege that 25-year-old Janiah Mateo and her mother, Sandra Madrigal, along with a third unidentified accomplice, confronted a female victim, punching her repeatedly in the face and causing physical injuries.
On Tuesday, July 14, 2026, Mateo surrendered to detectives at the Wilbur H. Francis Command Police Station. She was charged with Third-Degree Assault and Disturbance of the Peace by Fighting.
Unable to post her $25,000.00 bail, Mateo was remanded to the John A. Bell Adult Correctional Facility pending her Advice of Rights hearing on Wednesday morning before Judge Yolan C. Brow Ross.
Suspect Profiles: Ages, Identifiers, and Frequented Areas
The VIPD has released exact physical descriptions and target areas for both women:
- Janiah Mateo (In Custody): Born October 20, 2000, the 25-year-old is described as an African American female, 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing 103 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. Police records note she frequently hangs out at the Walter I. M. Hodge Pavilion housing community.
- Sandra Madrigal (STILL AT LARGE): The 49-year-old mother is wanted on identical Third-Degree Assault charges. She is described as an African American female, 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing approximately 158 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. Police state she is known to frequent the Estate Bellevue area.
A Deep Dive Into the Archives: Not Their First Joint Arrest
This is not the first time this mother-daughter duo has made major headlines on St. Croix. A dive into our V.I. Free Press archives reveals that Sandra Madrigal and another daughter, Michelle Mateo (then 25), were arrested together by the VIPD Economic Crimes Unit in December 2019.
In that high-profile incident, Madrigal (then 42) and Michelle Mateo were hit with multiple felony charges—including grand larceny, identity theft, forgery, and passing counterfeited checks—after using their true identities to cash forged checks totaling over $14,000 using the names of established St. Croix businesses.
Now, seven years later, the family legal troubles have shifted from financial fraud to physical violence, with Janiah Mateo in a jail cell and police actively searching the Bellevue area for her mother.
Have You Seen Sandra Madrigal?
The VIPD is urging the community to assist in locating Madrigal. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to contact emergency services at 911, the Wilbur H. Francis Command at 340-712-6063, or the anonymous Crime Stoppers USVI hotline at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
