Man Arrested, Charged with Illegal Possession of Body Armor

St. Thomas, USVI- Fabian Towers, 50, made his initial appearance in District Court today before U.S. Magistrate Ruth Miller after his arrest for Illegal Possession of Body Armor, United States Attorney Ronald W. Sharpe announced. Towers was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service pending a detention hearing scheduled for July 1, 2015.

On April 9, 2015, a federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment charging Towers with Possession of Body Armor by a Violent Felon, in violation of federal and territorial law. According to the indictment, Towers possessed a bullet proof vest and had previously been convicted of First Degree Robbery in 1982 and 1983. As a person convicted of a crime of violence, Towers is prohibited from possessing body armor. If convicted, Towers, faces up to three years in prison on both the federal count and the territorial count.

United States Attorney Sharpe reminds the public that an indictment is merely a formal charging document and is not evidence of guilt. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The case is the result of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Virgin Islands Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sigrid M. Tejo-Sprotte.