The U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD), in coordination with federal law enforcement partners, actively responded to recent threats targeting schools in the St. Croix District. All public schools in the St. Croix District were closed on Monday, August 25, 2025, out of an abundance of caution to protect students, faculty, and staff. Heightened security measures were also implemented across both districts, with VIPD carrying out precautionary searches in the St. Thomas–St. John District. Schools in the ST. John District remained open, as no active threats were reported there.
U.S. Virgin Islands – V.I. Attorney General Gordon C. Rhea announces that 43-year-old Alan Motta, was arrested on Friday, August 15, 2025, for failing to comply with mandatory registration requirements for sex offenders in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Motta, a Tier 3 registered offender, failed to update his registration information with the Virgin Islands Department of Justice (VIDOJ), as required by law.
U.S. Virgin Islands – V.I. Attorney General Gordon C. Rhea announced that on July 21, 2025, the Honorable Judge Ernest E. Morris sentenced 48-year-old Anson Gallaway of Estate Frydendal St. Thomas, to 5 years’ probation for Obtaining Money by False Pretense in V.I. Superior Court. Gallaway pled guilty on April 30, 2025, to taking money from multiple individuals in St. Thomas and St. Croix between February 2020 and December 2021 for the construction of prefabricated homes but failed to fulfill his contractual obligations.
St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands – The V.I. Department of Justice (DOJ) proudly congratulates Khadeem W. DeSilvia, Medicolegal Death Investigator with the DOJ Office of the Medical Examiner, for attending and presenting at the 2025 International Association of Coroners and Medical Examiners (IACME) Annual Conference in Las Vegas, NV, from July 19-24, 2025.
St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands – In a strategic effort to enhance trial preparation and prosecution effectiveness, the Virgin Islands Department of Justice (DOJ), St. Croix Criminal Division, hosted a specialized Trial Academy for the Criminal Investigations Bureau (CIB) of the Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) on July 11th. The academy, aimed at both detectives and attorneys, focused on preparing key law enforcement personnel for successful trial outcomes by providing intensive training in trial advocacy, evidence presentation, and courtroom procedures.