St. Croix Brothers Sentenced To Prison For Carjacking And Related Offenses

St. Croix, USVI - District Court Chief Judge Wilma A. Lewis on Tuesday sentenced one St. Croix man to 22 years in prison, and his twin brother to 11 years for carjacking, robbery and other related offenses, announced United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe and Virgin Islands Police Commissioner Rodney Querrard.

Kareem Louis, 22, was sentenced to 121 months in prison for carjacking; 84 months for using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence; 120 months for robbery; 180 months for unauthorized possession of a firearm during a violent crime, a mandatory minimum sentence; 180 months for unauthorized possession of a firearm; and 60 months for unauthorized use of a vehicle. All of the sentences are to be served concurrently, except the 84 months for using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, which will be served consecutively.

Raheem Louis, 22, was sentenced to 140 months for carjacking, 120 months for robbery, and 60 months for unauthorized use of a vehicle, all to be served concurrently. The Louis brothers also were ordered to pay $150 in restitution to the victim.

Kareem Louis was convicted on December 14, 2012 and Raheem Louis was convicted on December 19, 2011. Evidence presented at both trials established that on August 19, 2011, Kareem and Raheem Louis approached the victim after she had just unloaded a donation to the flea market in the Richmond area of St Croix. Kareem Louis pointed a long-barreled gun at the victim’s head and demanded the keys to her car. The defendants then sped off in her 2010 blue Jeep Compass. Evidence presented at trial also established that the brothers drove the stolen car to their minor siblings’ residence and used the vehicle to take their minor siblings to the Catherine’s Rest Supermarket on three occasions. On their third trip to the store, police apprehended Kareem Louis as he exited the Jeep Compass. He was ordered to stop and did so briefly before running to the side of the shop. As he was running, police observed him reach to his waist and observed a firearm in his hand. A long-barreled handgun was found behind a dumpster in the area where Kareem Louis was observed. Raheem Louis sped off in the vehicle and led the police on a high-speed chase. He abandoned the vehicle in the bushes near the Catherine’s Rest Road and Southside Road intersection. Raheem Louis was arrested pursuant to a warrant on September 1, 2011.

U.S. Attorney Sharpe commended the efforts of the Virgin Islands Police Department, which investigated this case. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Rhonda Williams-Henry and Alphonso Andrews.