Bryan Hagerich was the first American tourist to be sentenced for inadvertently having ammunition in his belongings on the Turks and Caicos Islands. The British protectorate wields draconian laws against firearms and ammo, and U.S. citizens are being caught in the net.
Hagerich was permitted to leave the island country after paying a $6,700 fine and being subjected to a 52-month suspended sentence. He faced an astounding 12 years behind bars after pleading guilty to his “crime.”
The Pennsylvania resident was stuck in the tropics for more than 100 days and resorted to sharing an apartment with other Americans awaiting trial.
He’d used the same luggage for a previous hunting trip and had left ammo in one of the many compartments of the suitcase. Hagerich told reporters that he never imagined being trapped on the island “for a simple mistake.”
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D) made the welcome announcement after he and other lawmakers visited the islands to plead for leniency.
The freshman senator called it “great news” that his constituent will be reunited with his family. He noted that the Washington delegation was met with assurances from TCI officials that they wanted to resolve the situation.
“They recognized that Bryan and the other detained Americans are not gunrunners — they are just people who made a mistake. I’m grateful that the judge recognized that the right thing to do was to send Bryan home.”
Residents of the Caribbean vacation spot have been besieged by escalating gang violence and criminal activity. As this could frighten away the all-important tourist industry, officials enacted harsh punishments as a means of gun control.
But five Americans were snared, and four still await their turn to receive proper justice and be reunited with their families.
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