A Bomb Threat, A U-Turn, and A Day that Emptied St. Croix’s Schools

The message spread the way many do these days — as a voice note (and later a screen recording) that bounced from phone to phone and was passed through group chats and WhatsApp chains late Sunday night. Its language was explicit. Its threats — of bombs and violence targeting Black students — were both jarring and specific. And by Monday morning, schools across St. Croix were empty.

The Virgin Islands Education Department confirmed late Monday that every St. Croix public school campus had been cleared and would reopen Tuesday after extensive sweeps that also included private schools, with law enforcement maintaining a visible presence. Schools in the St. Thomas–St. John district — which were not closed Monday but still searched — have likewise been cleared. But the broader investigation, led by VIPD in partnership with the FBI, is still active and ongoing.

For Tafari Nelson, the day shifted in a heartbeat. His wife, who works at Juanita Gardine, had shared the voice note with him the night before. By Monday morning, he’d dropped his daughter at day care and was on the way to work when the call came to pick up his son. He made a U-turn.

On the ride home, Nelson used the time to talk with his son — calmly, but seriously — about what a bomb threat is and why it’s not something to ignore. At home, they sat together and recorded a short YouTube video, framed as a news report, that had garnered thousands of views by midday.