An Oklahoma man faces up to 12 years in prison on a Caribbean island after customs officials found ammunition in his luggage.
Ryan Watson went to the Turks and Caicos Islands with his wife, Valerie, to celebrate his 40th birthday on April 7. They went with two friends who also turned 40.
The vacation ended suddenly suddenly when airport staff found a Ziploc containing ammunition in the couple’s carry-on luggage.
Watson said it was hunting ammunition he accidentally had with him – but strict laws in the Turks and Caicos Islands could still force a court to impose a mandatory 12-year prison sentence.
“They were after the cartridges I used on white-tailed deer,” Watson told NBC Boston in an interview last week that aired after their initial court appearance Tuesday.
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“I recognized them and thought, ‘Oh my gosh, what a stupid mistake. I didn’t know they were there,'” he said. The couple was arrested and charged with possession of ammunition.
Authorities seized their passports and explained the penalties they faced. “When I heard that, I was immediately frightened because I thought that neither of us could spend 12 years in prison.
We had children at home, and it was an innocent mistake,” Valerie Watson said in an interview on the news channel. The charges against her were dropped, and she returned home to Oklahoma City.
After court to reunite her with her two children. “Our goal is to bring Ryan home because we can’t be a family without Dad,” “She also talked about the financial burden of traveling longer than expected, which we may not be able to ever get over it,” Ryan Watson said.
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The United States Embassy in the Bahamas issued a travel warning in September regarding laws prohibiting the possession of firearms or ammunition in the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British overseas territory in the southeastern Bahamas.
It said: “We would like to remind all travelers that declaring weapons in your baggage to the airline does not authorize the introduction of weapons into the Turks and Caicos Islands and will result in you being arrested.”
The Embassy added: “If you bring firearms or ammunition to TCI, we will not be able to secure your release.”
NBC News has reached out to the Embassy and the government of Turks and Caicos for comment.
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The same happened to another American, Bryan Hagerich, of Pennsylvania, who was arrested after ammunition was found in his luggage before trying to board a flight from the Turks and Caicos Islands into February this year. He said he accidentally put it in his bag.
He was on a family vacation with his wife and two small children but has been back home for 70 days now. He spent eight days in jail before being released on bail. It’s extremely scary.
You know, you just don’t know what the next day is going to bring. You know, which way it could go,” Hagerich told NBC Boston.
“You know, it’s different to pack your bags and go away for a few days with your family. It was the worst 70 days of my life,” he said.
The Florida Marlins drafted a former professional baseball player, Hagerich in the June 2007 MLB amateur draft out of the University of Delaware. His case will be heard on May 3, .
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