ST. CROIX — A U.S. Army veteran who moved to St. Croix from the mainland was killed during a hit-and-run car accident in Catherine’s Rest, the V.I. Police Department made known Sunday evening.

According to police spokesman Glen Dratte, at approximately 10:16 p.m. Saturday, the Traffic Investigation Bureau (T.I.B.) was notified by the Ancilmo Marshall Command Police Station of a collision involving a pedestrian in Catherine’s Rest.

Officers arrived to the scene and observed an unresponsive black male who was later identified as William T. Massey, age 56, by the V.I. driver’s license found on his person. 

T.I.B.’s preliminary investigation and evidence at the scene indicate that Massey was walking southbound towards his home in a well-lit area, when a vehicle that was traveling in the same direction struck Massey and dragged him for several feet, leaving his body in the center of the roadway. The vehicle and the driver were not at the scene of the collision, according to the V.I.P.D.

The medical attendant at the Juan F. Luis Hospital pronounced Massey dead from lacerations he sustained to the body and head, and a puncture wound to the forehead. 

Massey’s mother was notified, and she stated that he had moved to St. Croix as a retired veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces. 

T.I.B. detectives canvased the Catherine’s Rest area for the vehicle involved in the collision with negative results, the V.I.P.D. said.

This incident remains under investigation. Anyone with information is asked to call T.I.B. at 340-227-0184, or send an anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers USVI here.

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