American Stuck In Turks and Caicos Jail After Airport Staff Found Ammo In His Luggage
An American father, Ryan Watson, 40, finds himself in a precarious legal situation, facing the possibility of a 12-year prison sentence in Turks and Caicos.
This situation arose after authorities discovered ammunition in his luggage upon his return from a vacation with his wife.
The Daily Mail reports that Watson, who was arrested on April 11, endured an extended stay on the island, accompanied by his wife, Valerie, 38. In a recent turn of events, Valerie witnessed the dropping of charges against her on Monday, granting her permission to reunite with their two young children back home.
She endured 11 days facing charges alongside her husband, but had her charges dropped on April 22.
The outlet details the sequence of events that unfolded as the Oklahoma couple proceeded through airport security.
The unraveling began when a small bag containing bullets, neatly packed in a zip-lock bag, was discovered in Ryan’s luggage upon their return trip, a detail that American TSA overlooked during their initial departure.
Authorities detected four rounds of hunting ammunition concealed in Ryan’s carry-on baggage. Both Ryan and Valerie maintain that the presence of the ammunition was inadvertent, with Valerie expressing to CBS News, “We were trying to pack board shorts and flip flops. Packing ammunition was not at all our intent.”
Ryan expressed in an interview prior to his initial court appearance, “My heart sank as soon as I saw the bullets.” He admitted recognizing them from a recent hunting expedition, lamenting, “I had no idea that those were in there.”
The couple’s pleas of innocence fell on deaf ears as officials dismissed Ryan’s assertion of an “innocent mistake.”
Authorities in Turks and Caicos reiterated the gravity of the offense, citing stricter laws implemented in 2022, which stipulated a minimum 12-year sentence for ammunition possession.
Valerie, visibly distraught, tearfully revealed her immediate terror upon learning of the mandatory sentence, fearing the prospect of being separated from their children for over a decade.
The emotional reunion with her children, captured by cameras on Tuesday, served as a poignant moment for Valerie, albeit tinged with sorrow as her husband’s legal predicament remains unresolved.
“I’ve been thinking about this moment for a while, and I didn’t know when it was going to happen,” she shared with KOCO.
Valerie, alongside influential Oklahoma figures such as Governor Kevin Stitt and Senator Markwayne Mullin, continues to advocate for Ryan’s cause.
Stitt, in a letter to Turks and Caicos officials, emphasized Ryan’s character as an “avid outdoorsman,” portraying the incident as an oversight rather than a deliberate transgression.
Mullin’s office affirmed their engagement with the Watson family, actively pursuing avenues for Ryan’s return home.
Valerie finds solace in faith amidst the uncertainty, remarking, “We know that God’s still working and he’s working through us.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family. It has received over $150,000 of its $250,000 goal at the time of publishing, and provides timely updates about the couple.
An April 24 update shares, “Ryan spent the last two nights in jail. Today they had a bail hearing and fortunately he was able to make bail. He is awaiting the next court appearance scheduled June 7th.”
Says a lot about our Airports in general. American TSA whom were on duty when he got onto plan shone schooled in their job responsibilities