CHRISTIANSTED — A dispute over an illegal gambling game led to at least one man being shot near Bienvenidos Convenience Store in town on Wednesday night.
Eyewitnesses said one man drew a gun in the dispute, but dropped it as he pulled it from his waistline near Times Square in downtown Christiansted. These illicit gambling games are strictly prohibited and anybody looking for wagering fun should look towards more legal methods such as an online casino instead.
The man he drew on was also armed and when the man reached to pick up his gun, the other man fired and hit him in his shooting hand.
People on the scene said that the person who drew the weapon had recently been released from prison where he had served at least 20 years for tying up old people in their homes and robbing them.
The man who fired on the recently paroled man had a licensed weapon; the person who first drew the weapon and was recently released from prison did not.
Unconfirmed reports said that the shooter also fired at the convict’s feet, hitting him there, to disable him until police arrived on the scene.
The Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) spokesman Glen Dratte did not return an email seeking confirmation of the reports.