Federal and local raid on Oswald Harris Court leads to two marijuana arrests and a separate crack cocaine bust in Red Hook

6 The Virgin Islands Daily News VIRGIN ISLANDS Tuesday, December 13, 2016 Oswald Harris Court raid yields 2 marijuana arrests By SUZANNE CARLSON Daily News Staff ST. THOMAS — A massive op- eration involving more than a dozen armed local and federal officers — while a helicopter circled overhead — at Oswald Harris Court on Fri- day evening yielded two marijuana arrests. Jose Squiabro, 42, and Yasim Ross, 31, both of Oswald Harris Court, were arrested as a result of the opera- tion, according to court documents. Both were charged with possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and released Monday after posting $10,000 bond each. Arraignment for the two men is scheduled for Jan. 5. Friday’s operation shut down the housing community and caused alarm for residents around Estate Thomas, Long Bay and Centerline Road. More than a dozen armed officers secured the intersection around Build- ing 9 in the housing community as a US. Customs and Border Protection helicopter flew overhead. None of the officers would say what they were do- ing, but they were dressed in tactical yl LUMBER Best Lumber in the Industry: * Putnam Lumber * Georgia Pacific * Dantzler Trade * Aljoma Lumber * Free Delivery Best Prices on Galvalume in the V.I. (340) 778-2331 # 251 ESTATE GLYNN, ST. CROIX We Ship To STT & STJ gear, some armed with long guns that appeared to be semi-automatic rifles, and officers wore body armor labeled as being from the Drug Enforcement Administration or police. Probable cause affidavits filed Monday against Squiabro and Ross shed light on the operation, known as “December Reign.” The operation is a joint effort by officers from Homeland Security In- vestigations, U.S. Customs and Bor- der Patrol, the Bureau of Alcohol, To- bacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Jus- tice Department, and the VI. Police Department. It is meant to patrol St. Thomas housing communities, “due to the recent increase in gun violence in those areas,” according to the af- fidavit for Ross. At 4:45 p.m. Friday, officers ap- proached a group of men around Building 20 and noticed Squiabro drop a partially smoked joint, accord- ing to the affidavit. Officers recovered the joint and 105 bags containing marijuana, ac- cording to the affidavit. The affida- vit does not note how large the bags were or the total weight of marijuana SKYRIDE TO PARADISE POINT ARADISE POINT IS THE PER T PLACE FOR YOUR INCREDIBLE VIEW, GROUPS LARGE OR SMALL AND PLENTY OF VERED NG! BOOK NOW 774-9809 recovered. Officers also recovered $1,045 in cash and a Samsung cell phone from Ross, both of which were returned to him, according to the affidavit. Squiabro’s criminal history includes a 1993 arrest for second-degree bur- Daily News file photo A U.S. Customs and Border Protection helicopter circles Estate Thomas on Friday evening as police on the ground secured the intersection around Building 9 at Oswald Harris Court housing community on St. Thomas. glary, which was dismissed in 1997; a 1996 arrest for possession of stolen property, for which he was sentenced to a $500 fine, one year in jail suspended after six months, and two years’ proba- tion; and a 2001 arrest for possession of an unlicensed firearm, for which there Crack dealer arrested in By SUZANNE CARLSON Daily News Staff ST. THOMAS — Federal agents arrested a crack cocaine dealer in Red Hook on Saturday as part of an ongoing investigation targeting armed drug trafficking, according to court documents. Tolomah Foy was arrested and charged with possession of crack cocaine with intent to distribute, ac- cording to an affidavit filed Monday by a special agent with the U.S. Bu- reau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, also known as the ATF. The arrest came as a result of oper- ation “Total Recall,’ an ATF initiative on St. Thomas that began in August and is ongoing, according to the af- fidavit. “This investigation focuses on the armed drug trafficking fueling vio- lence which has resulted in over 48 homicides to date,” according to the affidavit. Agents focused on armed drug traffickers operating in Red Hook, a commercial bar and restaurant dis- trict frequented by a large number of tourists, and have created cases against 10 subjects for federal fire- arm and narcotics violations so far, according to the affidavit. On Nov. 11, an undercover agent made a cold contact with Foy, also known as “T;’ who led the agent behind Tap and Still and sold him approximately 3 grams of crack co- caine, according to the affidavit. The agent exchanged phone num- bers with Foy and called him on Nov. 14 to arrange another transaction out- side the Fresh Mart Grocery store. Foy asked the agent to instead meet him behind Tap and Still, where he sold him approximately 6 grams of crack cocaine for $200, according to the affidavit. On Nov. 17, Foy sold the Dr. Luis Frias, Board Certified Neurologes! and Clinical Neurophysiologist was “no known disposition” listed in court documents. Similar to Squiabro’s arrest, at about 5:50 p.m. Friday, officers ap- proached Ross and other men near the 1st Stop Gas Station in Estate Thomas, which is located south of Oswald Harris Court. When asked whether he had any illegal substanc- es, Ross said, “yeah I have a little weed in my back pocket,” according to the affidavit. Officers found a total of 2.2 ounces of marijuana packaged in various plas- tic bags in Ross’ possession and arrest- ed him, according to the affidavit. Ross’s criminal history includes a 2003 arrest for third-degree burglary; a June 2009 arrest for delaying and obstructing; a Sept. 2009 arrest for first-degree robbery, possession of a dangerous weapon, and unauthorized use of a vehicle; and he was arrested in January and charged with destruc- tion of government property. Court documents list “no known disposition” for each of Ross’s prior arrests. — Contact Suzanne Carlson at 340-714-9122 or email scarlson@ dailynews.vi. Red Hook agent 9 grams of crack cocaine for $600 at the same location. On Friday, the agent exchanged text messages with Foy and ar- ranged for another transaction, and on Saturday, agents recorded a phone call with Foy in which he agreed to sell approximately $1,500 worth of crack cocaine, according to the affidavit. The agent met with Foy at approxi- mately 6:15 p.m. Saturday in the rear parking lot of Tap and Still, “con- sequently the ATF cover teams de- scended on scene and arrested Foy,” according to the affidavit. Agents retrieved 15 grams of crack cocaine from Foy on Saturday, and seized approximately a total of 32 grams of crack cocaine from Foy dur- ing the investigation, according to the affidavit. — Contact Suzanne Carlson at 340-714-9122 or email scarlson@ dailynews.vi. Dr. Frias provides treatment and management of neurological disorders including: Epilepsy * Muscle diseases * Peripheral nerve diseases * Nerve damage © Cerebral palsy Headaches © Mobility disorders * Neurogenetic diseases * Neurobehavior disorders Birth defects of the brain and spinal cord * Mental retardation & developmental delay Stroke, Brain Tumors & Neurofibromatosis. © 340-719-0681 { ) iamond R HOUSE_OVERSIGHT_014503 Adult Appointments: C 340-713-7000 * 4100 Sio