Ryan Watson, an American tourist, will avoid further jail time after being arrested in the Turks and Caicos Islands for bringing ammunition into the country. Instead, he has been fined $2,000 (£1,500) – $500 for each of the four bullets found in his luggage, according to his spokesperson, Jonathan Franks.
A recent law banning the importation of ammunition into the Turks and Caicos Islands, a popular tourist destination, stipulates a minimum sentence of 12 years in prison. However, the judge overseeing Watson’s case deemed a lengthy sentence unnecessary following his guilty plea.
“We will make payment shortly, depart [Turks and Caicos Islands], and anticipate being home in [Oklahoma City] tonight,” Franks stated on social media on Friday.
In recent months, five Americans have been detained in the Turks and Caicos Islands after officials found ammunition in their luggage. Watson, who claims he was unaware of the hunting ammunition in his bag, is the third American to receive a suspended prison sentence and a fine for the offense.
Watson, a resident of Oklahoma and father of two, was detained on April 12 when airport officials discovered four rounds of hunting ammunition in his carry-on luggage. He and his wife, Valerie Watson, were attempting to leave the islands after a vacation. While Mrs. Watson was allowed to return to the U.S., her husband was jailed until he paid a $15,000 bond and has remained on the islands facing ongoing legal proceedings.
In April, Watson told CBS News, the BBC’s American news partner, that he had no intention of breaking any laws and deeply regretted the situation. “There was zero intent behind this, and this was 100% a mistake and an accident,” he said.
The Turks and Caicos Islands amended their laws at the end of 2022, mandating a 12-year minimum sentence for bringing ammunition to the islands. This amendment followed a “marked increase” in homicides in 2020 and 2021 linked to “international crime, gangs, the availability of firearms, and drug dealing and trafficking,” according to the UK government. As of Friday, no U.S. citizen has received the mandatory minimum sentence for this offense.
Last month, Tyler Wenrich, another American tourist, avoided further jail time after being fined $9,000 (£7,040) for bringing ammunition into the country. In February, Bryan Hagerich, a U.S. tourist from Pennsylvania, was fined $6,700 (£5,245) and given a one-year suspended sentence after officials found 20 rifle rounds in his checked bag. He returned home after the verdict.
Another American was allowed to return home last month for unspecified medical reasons, and a fifth American, Sharitta Grier of Florida, will face court in July after officials allegedly found two bullets in her carry-on bag.