An indictment has been unsealed against Calvert White, the commissioner of the Virgin Islands Department of Sports, Parks, and Recreation, and Benjamin Hendricks, a local businessman. Both individuals are accused of participating in a bribery scheme. Their initial court appearances took place today in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.

Court documents indicate that White, aged 49 from St. Thomas, allegedly solicited and accepted a bribe through Hendricks, aged 62 also from St. Thomas. The bribe came from David Whitaker, a government contractor at the time. The indictment suggests that this scheme started around December 2023 and continued until June 2024. In return for the bribe paid by Whitaker, White purportedly agreed to assist him in securing a $1.43 million contract with SP&R by providing confidential bid information and taking official actions to promote awarding the contract to Whitaker. Hendricks is alleged to have acted as an intermediary for these payments.

Both White and Hendricks face charges of honest services wire fraud and federal program bribery. Honest services wire fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison while federal program bribery carries up to 10 years in prison. Sentencing will be determined by a federal district court judge after considering U.S. Sentencing Guidelines along with other statutory factors.

The announcement was made by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brent S. Wible from the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Delia Smith for the District of the Virgin Islands; and Special Agent in Charge Joseph Gonzalez of the FBI San Juan Field Office.

The case is being investigated by the FBI San Juan Field Office's St. Thomas Resident Agency.

Trial Attorneys Alexandre Dempsey and Steve Loew from the Criminal Division’s Public Integrity Section along with Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Conley for the District of the Virgin Islands are handling prosecution duties.

It is important to note that an indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.