V.I. Police Department officers on St. Croix and St. Thomas arrested two high school students on Friday, December 2, on their respective campuses.
On St. Thomas, a 19-year-old Ivanna Eudora Kean High School student from St. John stabbed another student and on St. Croix, a student brandished a weapon in the presence of monitors.
IEKHS student Ronald Jackson, 19, of Estate Hard Labor on St. John, was arrested shortly after 5:30 p.m. on December 2 and charged with First Degree Assault.
VIPD’s prepared statement said Jackson stabbed a victim during a fight at the school. His bail was set at $75,000.
A story in the Tuesday, December 6, edition of the V.I. Daily News, however, painted a different picture form the VIPD’s press release. Instead of a fight at the Red Hook high school campus, Jackson seemed to be the leader of a group of St. John IEK students who jumped the 16-year-old victim at around 3:20 p.m. on December 2.
According to a probable cause fact sheet written by VIPD Detective Nigel James, the victim said he was warned by another student that classmates from St. John were planning to jump him, according to the report in the St. Thomas daily newspaper.
The victim left the area, but Jackson caught up with him, according to the report.
“Jackson approached him and told him that he do not like snitches and he don’t want him to snitch on him,” James was quoted in the V.I. Daily News.
The victim tried to walk away, but was punched in the back of the head, according to the report. When the victim turned around and punched Jackson back, a friend of Jackson’s began punching the victim, according to the report in the V.I. Daily News.
When the victim tried to run away, he fell to the ground, according to report. Jackson and his friend continued beating the victim while he was on the ground and Jackson pulled a knife from his pocket and stabbed the victim, according to the report.
The victim suffered stab wounds to his chin, chest and both sides of his body and had to receive 50 staples to close the wounds which also collapsed his left lung, according to the report in the V.I. Daily News.
Jackson was arrested at the Red Hook dock following the incident and charged with first-degree assault, third-degree assault and weapons charges. VIPD officials said Jackson admitted to the stabbing.
V.I. Superior Court Magistrate Judge Alan Smith advised Jackson of his rights on Monday, December 5, and issued a $15,000 bond which had not yet been posted. Jackson was being held at the Bureau of Corrections where he was awaiting a January 5 arraignment in V.I. Superior Court.
On St. Croix on December 2, Central High School student Kadeem Joseph of the John F. Kennedy housing community, was arrested shortly before 12 p.m. and charged with Brandishing and Exhibiting a deadly Weapon.
VIPD said Joseph brandished a box cutter in the presence of two school monitors on campus. VIPD said Joseph was in possession of the weapon when he was arrested. His bail was set at $10,000.
