Mon Ethos Punished for Whitaker’s Crimes, New Owner Says

The new owners of Mon Ethos Pro Support had planned to start installing 500 security cameras in the territory’s public school Monday.

That plan ended when the Virgin Islands government abruptly canceled all contracts with the St. Thomas-based company Friday — a day after its founder admitted to a brazen fraud and bribery scheme. Curtis Jones, who quietly took ownership of Mon Ethos in April, accused the Virgin Islands government of inconsistent messaging, endangering public safety by delaying the security cameras, and punishing the company and its employees for the actions of its former owner.

Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. praised Mon Ethos after the company had changed hands and continued to do so after fraud allegations against former-owner David Whitaker, Jones said. There have been no allegations of wrongdoing against Mon Ethos as a company nor any other of its employees, he said.

“MEPSVI is not its founder,” Jones said in a written statement. “The current owner and employees of MEPSVI have invested their own money—including paying out of pocket for necessary equipment like surveillance cameras—due to delays in payments from government agencies, yet they have continued to deliver essential security and forensic services for the Virgin Islands.”