St. Thomas Man, Already Serving Time In Federal Jail, Sentenced To One Year In Local Prison By Superior Court Judge

ST. THOMAS — V.I. Superior Court Judge James Carroll III on Friday sentenced Desi Henry to one year in prison for possession of a firearm, the Virgin Islands Department of Justice announced this afternoon.

Mr. Henry, 22, of Anna’s Retreat who accepted a plea agreement, pleaded guilty to the April 17, 2013 crime. According to the terms of the plea deal, the prosecutor and public defender recommended that in exchange for the plea of guilt, Mr. Henry be sentenced to two years in prison to run concurrently with a 40-month federal prison sentence he is already serving and be given credit for time served.

Addressing the court via teleconference, Mr. Henry said he was a changed man.

“I did my time, I rehabilitated,” he said. “When I get out, I want to go to college and take care of my family.”

Judge Carroll accepted Mr. Henry’s guilty plea and handed down his judgment, sentencing him to one year behind bars to be served simultaneously with his federal prison term.

Court documents show that on the day Mr. Henry was arrested, members of the Special Operations Bureau were conducting an inspection of Anna’s Retreat in the area commonly referred to as “The Turf.” Mr. Henry was sitting on a chair behind of a white truck when one of the officers saw him reach into his waist band and discard a firearm under the truck.

Officers retrieved the gun and a check of the records of the Firearms Register revealed that Mr. Henry was not a licensed gun owner, according to court records

In a separate and unrelated matter, Mr. Henry and another man were found in possession of three firearms that were discovered after a traffic stop on Veteran’s Drive. That incident occurred on Sept. 24, 2014.

Mr. Henry appeared before District Court Judge Curtis Gomez on Dec. 8, 2014 and pleaded guilty to possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number and possession of an unlicensed firearm. Having pleaded guilty to that crime, he was sentenced to 40 months in federal prison.