Akeem Batiste, 25, was shot to death Sunday morning and a man who was reportedly involved in a dispute with him was arrested, according to the V.I. Police Department.
Bruno Montute, 47 years old of Concordia, was charged with second-degree murder, police said.
It was the 20th homicide on St. Croix since the first of the year, the 40th in the territory.
According to police, the 911 emergency call center received a report of gunfire in Estate Concordia in the vicinity of the Queen Louise Home for Children. Moments later, a second report was received, this of a man having been struck by gunfire.
Responding officers discovered a young man, later identified as Batiste, lying motionless in the bushes, having sustained several gunshot wounds. Emergency medical personnel arrived, examined the Batiste and found no signs of life.
Police said preliminary information indicated that the victim and suspect had been involved in a dispute that escalated to the point of the suspect having shot the victim several times.
Detectives had detained Montute, and later arrested and charged him in the shooting death of Batiste. Bail was set at $200,000 and Montute was remanded to the Bureau of Corrections pending his advise of rights hearing.
