Sharia de Castro, founder of Imagination Academy VI, has publicly condemned the removal of Acting Police Commissioner Jacqueline Vanterpool, describing the decision as “a rejection of what this milestone stands for” in an open letter that has drawn widespread attention across social media.
The letter, titled “An Open Letter to the People of the Virgin Islands,” was published over the weekend, as residents continue to react to Governor Daniel Pruce’s announcement that former Royal Gibraltar Police Commissioner Richard Ullger has been recommended to serve as interim head of the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force (RVIPF). Vanterpool, who served in the post for more than a year, is expected to return to her role as deputy commissioner.
De Castro wrote that the decision undermines the territory’s progress toward self-governance, coming as the Virgin Islands marks 75 years of representative government. “Commissioner Vanterpool’s removal is more than a reshuffle; it’s a rejection of what this milestone stands for,” she said. “Her leadership bridged the gap between the police and the people with presence, trust, and understanding. And yet, she’s being replaced by a foreigner.”
In her statement, de Castro cited the Labour Code of the Virgin Islands, which gives priority to qualified Virgin Islanders in leadership roles. “If training was needed, support could have been given,” she wrote. “But to demote a capable woman in silence is unjust.”
De Castro also framed the issue as one of gender equity, arguing that the Governor’s decision “feels unfair, discriminatory, and dismissive of the women who fight daily for respect and recognition.” She added, “To act without explanation, while failures persist under his own remit, is not leadership. It is colonial convenience.”
Governor Pruce, in a statement issued Nov. 6, said Ullger’s appointment was made to ensure “continuity and stability” within the RVIPF. He added that Ullger brings “extensive senior policing experience in the context of the UK’s Overseas Territories” and thanked Vanterpool for her “service as acting commissioner over the past twelve months.”
Under the Virgin Islands Constitution Order, 2007, the Governor retains authority over appointments and removals of senior police officers, acting on the advice of the Police Service Commission and the National Security Council. However, the Constitution also allows the Governor to act “otherwise than in accordance with” that advice if compliance would “prejudice Her Majesty’s service.”
De Castro’s letter concludes with a call for solidarity among Virgin Islanders, describing the controversy as a test of the territory’s right to self-determination. “This is not just about Commissioner Vanterpool,” she wrote. “It’s about self-governance. It’s about the right of Virgin Islanders to shape the destiny of these islands.”
Governor Pruce has not yet responded to de Castro’s remarks.
