Kareem Richardson of Fisher Street, Christiansted, turned himself in to the V.I. Police Department on Saturday after learning the police had a warrant out for his arrest.
If convicted, Richardson will have convictions for three separate intentional killings over the past 20 years.
He was charged with first-degree murder and unlawful possession of a firearm in the Nov. 1 shooting death of Bomani Christian. Christian had worked at the Boys and Girls Club but reportedly was planning to leave the island out of fear of Richardson.
Richardson was sentenced to 10 years in prison for voluntary manslaughter for shooting Perry Brathwaite in the head in 1999.
While in prison, he was charged and convicted on another voluntary manslaughter charge for his role in the stabbing death of a fellow inmate.
He was out of prison by 2010, when he was arrested at the scene of a shooting in Estate Tutu and charged with having an unlicensed firearm.
This most recent arrest took place at about 5:45 p.m. on Nov. 28. According to police, bail for Richardson was set at $1 million with no provision allowing him to post 10 percent. Unable to post bail, he was turned over to the custody of the Bureau of Corrections pending his advice of rights hearing.
Police said Christian was killed at a residence in Estate Catherine’s Hope in Christiansted. At 2:28 p.m. on Nov. 1 officers responded to a reported gunshot victim at a residence in Catherine’s Hope. At the scene, officers discovered an unresponsive male who was shot in the back. Emergency medical technicians on the scene concluded the man, later identified as Christian, had no signs of life.
The investigation revealed Christian was assaulted by two, unidentified, Black males who left the area in a dark maroon SUV.
In Sunday’s news release St. Croix Chief of Police Sidney Elskoe praised the efforts of the detectives of the Criminal Investigation Bureau and thanked the public for their assistance in circulating the wanted poster of Richardson on social media.
“This is a great example of how the VIPD and the community can work together toward a public safety goal,” Elskoe said. He encouraged everyone to contact the police with tips about other open crimes by calling 911, the Crime Tip Line at 340-778-4950 or Crime Stoppers USVI at 1-800-222-8477 (1-800-222-TIPS).
