Gang War: Man Shot To Death In St. Thomas Sunday Night Near Lionel Roberts Stadium

At around 9:30 p.m. on Feb. 1, automatic gunfire rang out at Hospital Ground, known to St. Thomas residents as ‘Round the Field’, near the Lionel Roberts stadium, leaving two men shot multiple times, sources with direct knowledge of the incident have revealed to VI Consortium.

One of the two men, identified by family members as LaKeel Wade, in his twenties, was rushed to the Schneider Regional Medical Center and placed on life support because he sustained a gunshot wound to the head. The doctors told family members that Wade, if he survived, would essentially become a “vegetable.” Wade was subsequently taken off of life support, these sources say.

The bloodshed is reported to be gang-related and sources tell VI Consortium Wade was allegedly involved in a killing in Savan some time ago, but was held in prison as a suspect. More recently, however, Wade was released back into the community because the case was thrown out of court.

According to sources, Wade, who was married, was about to have dinner with his wife on Sunday night when he received a call. He told his wife he would be “right back,” got into a black car with a friend, and drove to Hospital Ground.

When the men arrived at the location, Wade pulled out a gun and started firing at members of a rival gang, who had visited Hospital Ground looking for someone to shoot, sources say. The rival gang fired back at Wade and his friend, forcing Wade to get out of the car, which led to him being hit in the head by a bullet.

The other man who sustained gunshot wounds along with Wade has not yet been identified; however, he is in stable condition at the Schneider Regional Medical Center, sources say.

The shots were so loud that police cordoned off the entire area around the Lionel Roberts Stadium, including Blackbeards, Around the Field, Jah Yard, and other nearby neighborhoods.

It is not yet known if police were successful in capturing the suspects, and calls placed to the VIPD as of press time were not returned.

This brings the homicide count in the Virgin Islands for 2015 to seven: one on St. Croix, five on St. Thomas and one on St. John.

VI Consortium will continue to follow this story as it unfolds.

Image Credit: Panoramio