DOJ Seal

Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney's Office
District of the Virgin Islands

For Immediate Release

Thursday, June 28, 2018
Gretchen C.F. Shappert
, United States Attorney

Man Sentenced to 93 months of Imprisonment for Arson and Malicious Damage and Destruction Charges Related to Fires at Three U.S. Government Properties

St. Thomas, USVI – Spencer Wayne Allen, 26, was sentenced today before District Court Judge Curtis V. Gomez to 93 months of imprisonment for his convictions of arson and malicious damage and destruction to federal property, United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert announced. Judge Gomez also sentenced Allen to 3 years of supervised released, 300 hours of community service, and a $300 special assessment.
 
According to the plea agreement filed with the court, on February 28, 2017, Allen maliciously damaged the U.S. Navy and Marine Recruitment Center in the Nisky Shopping Center on St. Thomas by means of fire, resulting in the Center’s complete destruction. Also on February 28, 2017, Allen damaged by fire two other properties belonging to the United States – the Ron de Lugo Federal Building and United States Courthouse and the U.S. Coast Guard Station.
 
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the Department of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS), with the assistance of the Virgin Islands Territory Emergency Management Agency (VITEMA), Virgin Islands Police Department, Virgin Islands Port Authority, the Virgin Islands Fire Service, and the Virginia Beach Fire Department Fire Investigations. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Meredith J. Edwards and Everard E. Potter.
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Miami Field Division