After a five-day jury trial, a federal jury on Friday convicted St. Croix resident Ketisha Isles, 23, of conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery and interference with commerce by robbery, U.S. Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced.
In a news release issued Monday, Sharpe said evidence presented at trial established that on June 17, 2013, Isles was buzzed into Perfection Jewelry Store in the Sunny Isle shopping center. She held the door open for three masked gunmen to enter. Once in the store, one of the gunmen hit an employee several times with a gun. One man stood at the door while the other two went behind the counter, broke the display case and stole approximately $100,000 worth of 14-carat gold jewelry.
The evidence also showed that Isles knew of the robbery before it happened and agreed to hold the door open for the gunmen, Sharpe’s announcement said.
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to working with our federal and local partners to ensure that violent offenders are brought to justice,” Sharpe said.
Isles faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each of the two counts for which she was convicted. She was released on a $25,000 unsecured bond and remains free pending sentencing. No sentencing date has been set.
The case was investigated by the V.I. Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rhonda Williams-Henry.
