St. Croix Man Arrested for Murder in April Shooting Death

A St. Croix man was arrested for second-degree murder on Thursday in connection with a shooting death in April that at first appeared to be a suicide, the V.I. Police Department reported.

Steven Moore Jr., 27, was arrested early Thursday morning by members of the VIPD’s Criminal Investigation and Special Operation bureaus who also executed a search warrant at his home that was issued on Sept. 28 by Magistrate Judge Yolan Brow-Ross.

Moore is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Michael Petersen, whose father found him dead from a gunshot wound to his head the afternoon of April 10 at his Estate Whim home.

Moore is also charged with possession of an unlicensed firearm after a fully loaded gun and two additional magazines with ammunition were found in his bedroom during the search Thursday, police said. A record check revealed that he was not authorized to possess or carry a firearm, according to the report.