Police continue to search for two masked men who on Tuesday robbed Merchants Commercial Bank on St. John. One of the men had a gun in each hand.
Deputy Police Chief Darren Foy said the duo got away with an undisclosed amount of money.
The bank is located at the rear corner of the small shopping center near the Westin Resort and Villas that’s home to St. John Market. Although the bank is located in an area that’s officially Chocolate Hole, residents refer to it as Great Cruz Bay.
Foy said the bank is not visible from the street.
“So it seems like they did some casing,” Foy said.
According to Foy, the robbery began around 2 p.m. when the two masked men, walked into the bank and ordered everyone to the ground. One robber went through the drawers and collected cash from several desks, taking an undisclosed amount of money.
Foy said the suspects were black men with medium builds. He said they were between 5 feet nine inches and six feet tall. One suspect was wearing a blue jump suit and sneakers.
He said that both suspects fled in a blue GMC Jimmy that they later abandoned.
“It was found in close proximity to the bank robbery,” Foy said.
A St. John K-9 officer scoured the bushy area near where the vehicle was discovered but no suspects were found.
Police alerted V.I. Port Authority officers and inspected barges and ferries in case the robbers tried to flee St. John. They also searched in Cruz Bay and Coral Bay.
Forensic officers processed the crime scene for evidence and detectives interviewed witnesses.
Bank President James Crites did not return a phone call requesting comment.
St. John Administrator Leona Smith said she was shocked by the fact that a bank robbery happened on St. John. She said that she remembers an attempted bank robbery many years ago, but this is the first time anyone’s been successful.
“I never thought that something like this could happen on St. John, but you have to be cognizant that these things can occur,” she said.
Foy said that Merchants Commercial Bank had a security camera but no security guard.
Smith urged all businesses, including tourist-related shops, to install cameras even if they can’t afford security guards.
“These are hard economic times, and we can’t live like we used to,” she said.
Police are asking for the community’s help in solving this crime. Anyone with any information, no matter how insignificant it may seem, is asked to call Foy at 693-8880, chief of detectives Lt. Milton Petersen at 715-5522 or you can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
