Burned Car Confirmed To Be Vehicle Missing Man Was Last Seen Driving

ST. CROIX — The burned body of an unidentified victim was found in a charred vehicle confirmed to be the car driven by Naji Jarvis, the 21-year-old who went missing a few days ago, V.I.P.D. Commissioner Delroy Richards confirmed to The Consortium Tuesday morning. The information was first provided to The Consortium by someone with knowledge of the matter.

According to the police commissioner, the charred vehicle was found in Williams Delight shortly before midnight on Monday. It was located in the garage of a wooden house, causing not only V.I.P.D. officers to respond, but also VI Fire Service personnel, the commissioner said.

After the fire was quenched, a body was discovered in the vehicle burned beyond recognition, Mr. Richards said. “After the fire was doused, officers did an inspection and they determined that the car that was burnt was the car that was reported missing with a male individual a few days before,” Mr. Richards said. “A closer inspection of the car determined that there was, in fact, a burned body in the car — the body was burned beyond recognition.”

Mr. Richards said V.I.P.D. forensic officers were on the scene investigating the crime as of Tuesday.

According to the commissioner, it will take some time before DNA testing can reveal the identity of the victim, so he could not confirm for sure that the victim found in the vehicle was Mr. Jarvis.

“But we do know that we have a body that’s burned beyond recognition. It was a homicide,” he said.

Mr. Jarvis, according to a release the V.I.P.D. issued late Monday, was last seen operating a charcoal-colored 4-door Toyota Yaris.

He is known to frequent the John F. Kennedy Housing Community, and is a soldier in the U.S. Military whose weight is roughly 177 pounds. Mr. Jarvis is 5 feet, 7 inches tall, has brown eyes, a brown complexion, and a piercing in his left eyebrow, according to the V.I.P.D. He also has short, black hair and wears glasses.

The V.I.P.D. is asking anyone with any information about the homicide, or of Mr. Jarvis’s whereabouts, to call the Criminal Investigation Bureau at 340-778-2211.