St. Thomas Man Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison for Firearm Charges

St. Thomas, USVI – U.S. Attorney Delia L. Smith announced today that on September 8, 2023, St. Thomas resident Nijontea Walker, 21, was sentenced by Chief District Court Judge Robert A. Malloy to 30 months imprisonment followed by 30 months supervised release for possessing a firearm with an obliterated serial number and for possessing a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school zone.

According to court documents, Walker was arrested after an April 8, 2020 incident which occurred while Virgin Islands Police Department (VIPD) officers were patrolling the Hospital Ground neighborhood in St. Thomas due to recent shootings. VIPD officers pursued a group of individuals, including Walker, after the group ran when officers approached. Walker was observed holding a black bag containing an AK-47 firearm with an obliterated serial number. The bag and firearm were later recovered after being abandoned during the pursuit.

This case was investigated by VIPD and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kyle Payne.

This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach. Additional information about the OCDETF Program can be found at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.