CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A Puerto Rican boat captain was sentenced to a half year in prison and will lose his boat after he knowingly transporting illegal aliens for “commercial advantage or private financial gain,” authorities said. Arturo Serrano-Arizmendi, 27, of Culebra, Puerto Rico, was sentenced Thursday after being convicted of

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — The owner of a Puerto Rico-based construction company who fraudulently obtained about $800,000 in disaster relief funds intended to help the territory rebuild after the 2017 hurricanes has been sentenced to 1.16 years in prison. Juli Campbell of Florida was sentenced to 14 months in prison for

CHRISTIANSTED — A St. Croix convicted felon who tried to hide the shipment of a machine pistol, magazines and ammunition to himself by mixing them in to a shipment of tools was given 4.833 years in prison by a federal judge. William Payne, 39, of St. Croix, was sentenced on

CHRISTIANSTED — A St. Croix woman who presented herself as a top Virgin Islands National Guard commander and a local fashion model was sentenced to one year in prison after being convicted of 48 counts of wire fraud and one count of theft of government money. Aesha Rivers, 44, of

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A St. Thomas man was convicted in federal court on Thursday for his role in trying to run a pipeline of guns with obliterated serial numbers between Atlanta and the USVI, authorities said. Shawn Bernard Tyson was found guilty of being a felon in possession of ammunition

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A Puerto Rican man who mailed 4.4 pounds of cocaine to himself in Tampa by the U.S. mail was arrested at the St. Thomas airport over the weekend, authorities said. Juan Marrero, alias “Juan Marrero-Sanchez,” 24, appeared Monday before Magistrate Judge Ruth Miller for an advice of

CHRISTIANSTED — A St. Croix man is facing a decade in federal prison after pleading guilty to having thousands of images and videos that included depictions of babies subjected to violent sexual acts. Collin Gomes, 26, of Mars Hill, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to possession of child pornography,

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Two Pennsylvania women were handed sentences of 5.2 years and 6.4 years for a crack cocaine conviction in federal court. Ngoc Nguyen, 22, and Fendi Brooks, 26, both from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, were sentenced Thursday for conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of

CHARLOTTE AMALIE — A rogue U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officer who allegedly duct taped about 2.2 pounds of cocaine to his underwear prior to boarding a flight to Puerto Rico had his day in court in St. Thomas yesterday. Former TSA officer Miguel Batista, Jr., 26, appeared before U.S.

CHRISTIANSTED — A St. Croix man who tried to hide his undercover videos of children in sex acts with himself got 30 years in prison from a federal judge on Tuesday, authorities said. Gilroy D. Elcock, 47, of St. Croix, was sentenced for six counts of production of child pornography,