Routine traffic stop yields cache of illegal gun and ammunition

FREDERIKSTED — A man was arrested on St. Croix after police pulled him over during a traffic stop on the Melvin Evans Highway and discovered a cache of weapons and ammunition in his vehicle.

Jorge Ayala, 19, of Estate Paradise, was arrested at 8:44 p.m. Friday and charged with carrying of a firearm openly or concealed and possession or sale of ammunition, the Virgin Islands Police Department said. The case began on Friday night, when the Special Operations Bureau, on mobile patrol as part of “Operation Set De Tone,” conducted a traffic stop on a Silver Toyota Camry, according to the VIPD.

The Special Operations Bureau Tactical Team observed that the vehicle was being operated on the public road without any rear taillights, brake lights and also without a license plate affixed to the front bumper of said vehicle, police said. When SOB officers stopped the vehicle, they observed the front seat passenger with what appeared to be a gun holster in the waistband of his pants, according to police. At that point, the driver and passenger were each ordered out of the vehicle, VIPD Communications Director Glen Dratte said.