Governor-Elect Bryan Says Territory At ‘Crisis Point’ With Crime; Will Host Community-Based Meetings Upon Taking Office In Step To Pinpoint Root Of Problem

Governor-elect Albert Bryan issued a statement today addressing the recent wave of homicides that have rocked the territory, including a shootout in Frederiksted that left two men dead and five others injured.

In the statement, Mr. Bryan decried the violence, offered condolences to the aggrieved, and asked the community to join him in prayer for peace. The governor-elect also said he would host community-based meetings as a step to hone in on the deep-seated problems that have caused crimes to perpetuate.

“The recent wave of gun violence in our Virgin Islands community is intolerable. We are at a crisis point and can no longer afford to look the other way,” Mr. Bryan said in a statement.

Today, at a press conference hosted by the Virgin Islands Police Department, V.I.P.D. Commissioner Delroy Richards said not 6, but 7 male individuals were part of the shootout, two of whom succumbed to their injuries. The five other individuals were receiving care, with at least one said to be in critical condition and had to airlifted out of the territory for further attention.

Mr. Richards said the incident was retaliatory in nature, and that one of the deceased victims was the brother of 24-year-old Roland Bogan, who was found dead early Thursday near the Marley Housing Community in Frederiksted. Two suspects were on the loose as of Friday, the commissioner said. Mr. Richards has also sought the help of federal law enforcement arms to aid with the case.

For Mr. Bryan, an important part of the effort will be understanding the cause of the perpetuating crime. “While I ask you to join me in prayer for peace and for the families and their loved ones affected, especially during the holiday season, I also call on our community to be vigilant and to step up and speak up,” he said. “During our transition and in the first days of our administration, we will look at ways to facilitate community-based meetings to pinpoint the specific needs of our communities to make them safer and ways to provide additional support to our Virgin Islands Police and our justice department. We can no longer afford to ignore the systemic underpinnings which lead our young people to exact violence on each other as a means of conflict resolution.”