St. Thomas man faces seven charges after guns, Glock switch found in rental car

Police in St. Thomas arrested a 26-year-old man early Sunday after discovering an arsenal of weapons and narcotics inside a rental vehicle with fraudulent license plates, court documents show.

Officers from the Virgin Islands Police Department's Special Response Team pulled over a red Kia Soul on Kronprindsens Gade near Chicken Fry at approximately 1:50 a.m. on October 11. The vehicle bore plates registered as TIP-994, which dispatch found had no record in the territorial database. As officers approached, they detected marijuana odor from inside the car.

Shanon Roberts, the driver, admitted to smoking marijuana and stated he did not hold a firearms license in the territory. A search of the vehicle revealed a Smith & Wesson 9mm handgun in a lockbox inside a maroon JanSport backpack, along with an illegal Glock conversion switch and ammunition in calibres 9mm,.45,.30-30,.22 and.40. A second maroon satchel contained a loaded Glock 26 9mm handgun with a 17-round extended magazine. A third backpack held two containers of marijuana, with additional loose marijuana, rolling papers and a digital scale found in the centre console.

Investigators determined the vehicle's identification number was registered to different plates, T46-003, from Jonel Car Rental in Bovoni, confirming the licence plates had been swapped illegally. The stop occurred approximately 400 feet from Saints Peter & Paul Catholic School.

Roberts faced seven charges: two counts of illegal possession of an unlicensed firearm, possession of a firearm conversion kit, possession of ammunition, possession of an unlicensed firearm within 1,000 feet of a school, unlawful transfer of licence plates, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, and possession of drug paraphernalia.

At his Tuesday morning hearing before Magistrate Judge Simone M. VanHolten-Turnbull at Barbel Plaza South, the court found probable cause on all counts. Roberts was granted bail of $100,000 with the option to post $2,500 in cash, with the remainder unsecured. He was placed in the custody of his father at Thomasville Apartments.

Conditions of his release require weekly reporting to probation, continued employment at Electric Factory, and surrender of his passport and driver's licence. Roberts is barred from possessing firearms, weapons, alcohol or controlled substances and cannot leave the district without court permission.

He is scheduled for formal arraignment on Friday, October 30, 2026, at 10:00 a.m.