April 30, 2007 — Police are holding a 16-year-old male minor in connection with his involvement in an arson attack on St. Croix Central High School early Monday morning.
School administrators reported the suspected arson to police at 7:39 a.m. today. Staff coming in after the weekend found minor damage from several fire-starting attempts. Students were sent home for the day as emergency personnel pored over the crime scene and staff began to clean up the mess and damage.
The arsonist or arsonists tried to set several rooms on fire, said St. Croix Fire Chief Angel Torres.
“They threw two (Molotov) cocktails in the kitchen,” Torres said. “One was on the ground and the other behind the refrigerator …. They tried to light the main office again and there were two more cocktails over by the music room. There was not much damage, although a conduit for the public-address system was burnt.”
According to preliminary reports, police picked up a male minor who was found riding his bicycle in the early morning hours of April 30. Police detained the boy in accordance with curfew laws, which require all persons under age 16 to be home by 10 p.m. The boy was taken to the Wilbur Francis Command in Frederiksted and his parents notified. Shortly afterward, he was turned over to the custody of his father. At the time — before they were aware of the fire — police notified the boy's parent of an odor of gasoline on the boy's person and his belongings.
When the father took the minor child to school this morning to find school dismissed because of arson, he realized that his son may have played a role in the fire and took his son to the police station, according to police reports.
St. Croix Acting Police Chief Winsbut McFarlande commended the father for reporting his son's actions to police. "This is a difficult choice for any parent to make," McFarlande said. "The VIPD and this community commend him for bringing this information forward despite the potential repercussions for his son."
The boy has been charged with second-degree arson, destruction to public-school property and third-degree burglary. Police don't believe he was involved in the similar arson and vandalism at Central High that took place 10 days before, on April 20. In that incident, rocks were thrown through a window and gasoline splashed in and ignited. Outside, a pickup truck was torched. The fire did little damage to the building, but the truck was destroyed.
Police continue to investigate both incidents actively. Anyone with information regarding this or any crime is urged to contact the police hotline at (340) 778-4950 or 911.
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