American Tourist Becomes the Fifth Arrested in Turks and Caicos Within the Past 6 Months
Last month, Oklahoma man Ryan Watson made international headlines after being arrested and charged in Turks and Caicos for unwittingly violating their very stringent gun and ammunition laws. Watson, who unknowingly had a few rounds from a previous hunting trip still in his luggage, could face a 12-year prison sentence if convicted.
But Watson was only one of several American tourists who have recently met this same fate in Turk and Caicos. On May 13, an American woman joined the unenviable group as the fifth tourist arrested in the past six months over these strictly-enforced laws.
CBS Evening News reports that the 45-year-old American tourist was arrested after an airport security check found ammunition in her bag- almost identical to what happened to Ryan Watson a month prior. ABC News identified her as Sharitta Shinise Grier from Orlando, Florida. Grier and her daughter were visiting the Caribbean island territory for Mother's Day when security at the Howard Hamilton International Airport allegedly discovered two rounds of ammunition in her bag.
Grier joins Ryan Watson and three other American tourists from Texas, Pennsylvania, and Virgina as the fifth tourist potentially facing a 12-year prison sentence over Turks and Caicos' gun laws. According to ABC News, several US governors have written the governor of Turks and Caicos to release several of the jailed tourists, urging clemency. So far, though, it seems like the governor has left them all on read.
Crackdowns in Turks and Caicos
South Florida's WLRN News reports that Turks and Caicos officials amped up their gun laws in 2022 in response to rising gun violence due to weapons being smuggled into the Caribbean island territory. Their laws punish not only those who bring guns into the territory, but also those possessing ammunition, regardless of whether or not they were also in possession of a gun at a time. All five of the tourists arrested were found with loose ammunition, not weapons- yet all of them could still face more than a decade of prison time.
Not to overly editorialize, but frankly, it's surprising how many tourists travel without realizing they have loose ammunition in their bags- and even more surprising is how the majority of them managed to slip past US airport security. Though transporting firearms and ammunition is allowed by the TSA, they have very stringent guidelines for how said guns and ammo should be transported and packed. You'd think a few loose bullets in someone's bag would raise some red flags before the bag's owner even departed for Turks and Caicos!
So far, the Turks and Caicos government has given no public indication that they intend to be lenient towards these tourists, regardless of their lack of intent. If you plan on traveling to Turks and Caicos, do not take chances. If you store guns and ammo in your bags, triple-check them for loose ammo or casings before packing- or better yet, just don't use them at all. Buying a new purse or even a new luggage set is preferable to the punishment you could face if you're found with even one loose round in Turks and Caicos.
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