A gunshot wound sent a man to Juan F. Luis Hospital after an armed robbery in Coakley Bay on Thursday, October 15, police confirmed.
According to VIPD Director of Communications Glen Dratte, a woman dialed 911 near 10:15 p.m. to report that two black-clad assailants had robbed her boyfriend at gunpoint and fired at him in the leg before running away. Officers were already at the scene when the incident report was filed. Police did not disclose what items were taken or the victim's medical status.
The incident is one of several violent robberies that have struck St. Croix in recent months. On October 1, a 47-year-old man wielding a machete entered Sonya's Fine Island Jewelry on Company Street in Christiansted around 2:30 p.m. and stole roughly $20,000 in jewelry, cash and employee belongings, according to court records. Andrew Joseph was arrested within two hours, and police recovered stolen goods.
Earlier that month, on September 25 at around 12:13 a.m., a masked intruder forced his way into a woman's residence, threatened her with a gun and took personal items before leaving, Dratte told police records. On September 12 just after midnight, two masked robbers entered Yum Yum restaurant in Peters Rest, held staff at gunpoint and escaped with an unspecified sum. No one was hurt in that incident.
Police Commissioner Mario Brooks outlined a response at a September 28 briefing, saying a 90-day crackdown on robberies and burglaries had led to arrests and held several suspects in custody. He pledged that heightened foot patrols and tactical operations would remain active through the Crucian Christmas Festival period and potentially beyond. Officials credited this coordinated approach with enabling a swift arrest in the jewelry store case.
The crime surge follows a July alert from VIPD about a spike in commercial break-ins and residential invasions after nine properties were burglarized in a single day, predominantly in the La Grande Princesse neighbourhood.
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