Education Department still mum on probe into failures to report sexual abuse

The V.I. Education Department has not provided any updates on an investigation into reports that school staff failed to alert law enforcement about complaints that former track coach and hall monitor Alfredo Bruce Smith was sexually abusing students at Charlotte Amalie High School.

It has been weeks since reports began to surface that several school administrators have been quietly suspended, and Education spokeswoman Shayla Solomon has not responded to questions about whether specific individuals are currently at work with children, or at home on administrative leave. On Tuesday, Solomon again declined to provide answers to questions from The Daily News about the current employment status of those staff members, including Principal April Petrus.

“Thank you for reaching out to the Virgin Islands Department of Education. At this time, we are unable to provide further details as the matter is part of an ongoing investigation. Please be assured that we remain committed to transparency and will share relevant updates as soon as we are able to do so,” Solomon wrote in an emailed response. “We appreciate your understanding and patience as we work through this process.”