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Charlotte Amalie
Thursday, March 28, 2024
HomeNewsArchivesPlanning Still Investigating Enforcement Actions in Coral Bay

Planning Still Investigating Enforcement Actions in Coral Bay

The Planning and Natural Resources Department is still investigating what boaters view as heavy-handed actions by its Enforcement Division officers in Coral Bay, St. John.

“It’s still ongoing,” said DPNR spokesman Jamal Nielsen on Monday. “We know there have been photos and videos circulating.”

Nielsen said the department asked the attorney general’s office to assist in the internal investigation called by DPNR Commissioner Alicia Barnes.

Alan Mohler, who owns Coral Bay Marine, said he hopes Planning is serious about the internal investigation.

“We haven’t heard anything,” he said.

Barnes initiated the investigation July 27 after boaters at a July 26 meeting on proposed mooring and anchoring fee increases complained about the officers’ actions on a sweep through Coral Bay.

The boaters said the officers cut mooring lines, put violation stickers on boats they believed weren’t registered, demanded pedestrians show their identification and waved guns around.

One security camera video shot July 25 captured images of three officers conversing in the parking area near the dinghy dock. The video (see link below) was posted on YouTube. While Roberto Tapia, who heads DPNR Enforcement, has claimed the rifle was on a strap over the officer’s shoulder, the video clearly shows that wasn’t the case.

Tapia said in the press release issued when the internal investigation was announced that his officers were involved in a week-long initiative in Coral Bay to rid the area of illegal moorings and to enforce the law on “many” unregistered vessels in that area.

He said this effort was initiated by written correspondence and verbal requests from the many St. John residents who have registered vessels and legal moorings and by concerned Coral Bay residents who want to see increased enforcement in the bay. Boaters said they only wanted help in getting rid of sunken vessels.

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