THE $14 MILLION SMOKESCREEN: Akeal Wilkins and the Cost of Doing Nothing
(Akeal Wilkins / Facebook)
By JOHN McCARTHY / St. Croix Sun Investigative Reporter
ST. CROIX — One year ago today, a government prosecutor was frantically trying to prevent a legal meltdown. Today, Akeal Elijah Wilkins returns to Room CR-216, a living receipt for a system that spends millions to run in place.
The Anniversary of an Ultimatum On April 29, 2025, Assistant Attorney General Chad Mitchell was firing off high-stakes emails to the Department of Health (DOH) and the Bureau of Corrections (BOC). His mission: beg these agencies to follow a court order to move Wilkins to a mainland mental health facility before a "new and friendly" judge lost her patience and started handing out sanctions. Wilkins, the man allegedly caught with a green lighter outside a police command center he’d just scorched, was the center of a tug-of-war between agencies that couldn't find him a bed. Today’s status conference is a literal anniversary of that gridlock.
The $14 Million Export The numbers behind cases like Wilkins’ are staggering. Because the USVI lacks a dedicated forensic psychiatric facility, we have turned the mainland into our personal triage center.
The Daily Burn: Housing just one inmate in an off-island facility costs taxpayers between $250 and $1,000 per day.
The Annual Drain: The Department of Health is currently hemorrhaging nearly $14 million a year for these off-island placements—a price tag that has jumped from $10 million in 2023.
The Overtime Crisis: In 2024, the BOC spent $5 million on overtime. Director Wynnie Testamark confirmed much of this is driven by "special details"—officers who must fly to the mainland to guard inmates because we can’t treat them here.
The Blueprint in the Drawer While the territory bleeds cash, the solutions remain stuck in "design" phases.
The $27 Million Fix: A plan for a new John A. Bell Adult Correction Facility is on the books with an estimated cost of $27,048,214.
The Reality Check: Despite the urgent need, FEMA-funded construction isn't even targeted to start until late 2026, with a completion date drifting toward 2028.
THE ‘DESIGN’ TRAP: Why the Bell Tolls (But Doesn't Ring)
While the Governor has spent his final year issuing proclamations—including declaring May 2026 as "Mental Health Awareness Month"—the physical reality in St. Croix tells a different story.
The Blueprint Deadlock: The $27,048,214 FEMA-funded rebuild of the John A. Bell Adult Correction Facility is officially listed as "In Design". Despite the staggering off-island costs, the "Target Start Date" for construction isn't until November 2026—well after the current administration’s final curtain call.
The Completion Mirage: If that target holds, the project won't be finished until November 2028. That’s two more years of paying the $14 million "incompetency tax" to mainland facilities.
The "Grand Opening" Illusion: In August 2025, the Bureau of Corrections held a "Grand Opening" for a Specialized Mental Health Unit at the existing facility. While a "milestone," the fact that we are still discussing Akeal Wilkins’ lack of a stateside bed today suggests that this unit may be more of a temporary triage station than the forensic solution the territory was promised.
ANALYSIS: Luck vs. Law Enforcement
The Wilkins arrest remains a testament to luck over labor. He wasn't tracked down by an elite arson task force; a clerk at the Wilbur Francis Command literally looked out the window, saw the flames, and saw Wilkins standing there. In a territory where arson investigation is often considered the "weak link" of law enforcement, the Wilkins case serves as a reminder: sometimes you don't need the Best and Brightest—you just need someone to look out the window.
The Final Dispatch: As Judge Timmons sifts through the wreckage of the Wilkins file today, the fiscal reality is clear. The USVI is paying a $14 million "incompetency tax" every year we fail to build local mental health infrastructure. One has to wonder: if Elon Musk can land a rocket on a drone ship in the middle of the ocean, why can't the USVI land a forensic psychiatric bed in St. Croix? If he ever moves here, he’d likely solve the overtime crisis with a fleet of autonomous guard bots—and they’d probably be better at spotting a guy with a green lighter than a clerk looking out a window.
