The Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force recently confirmed the arrest of Sharitta Shinese Grier, a Florida woman accused of carrying ammunition at an airport in the islands. Grier is the fifth American to be arrested and detained in TCI after being caught with ammunition since February, joining others such as Ryan Watson of Oklahoma, Tyler Wenrich of Virginia, Bryan Hagerich of Pennsylvania, and Michael Lee Evans of Texas. The Police Force stated that Grier allegedly had ammunition in her possession during a routine search at the airport on May 13th. The specific details of the case were not provided at the time of publication.
Grier’s attorney declined to comment on the case when contacted by Fox News Digital. On the other hand, Watson, Hagerich, and Wenrich’s father have spoken out about their arrests over stray ammunition found in their luggage. The three men claim that they were unaware of the ammunition in their bags, which they had forgotten from previous hunting trips. They have emphasized that they did not intend to bring ammunition into the islands, and have faced the possibility of a minimum 12-year sentence under a recent TCI ordinance for the offense.
The detainees are required to argue before the TCI Superior Court that they were arrested under “exceptional circumstances” in order to potentially avoid the 12-year sentence. This includes proving that they have no criminal record, did not intend to bring ammunition into the airport, and showing why a 12-year sentence would be excessive in their cases. The lack of a constitutional right to carry firearms in Turks and Caicos was highlighted by the government, which has strict penalties for firearm and ammunition offenses to protect the community.
The U.S. State Department has issued a public service announcement warning Americans that they can be arrested for possessing any ammunition, even a single shell or casing, in many countries. They advised travelers to thoroughly check their belongings before traveling to avoid issues overseas. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro have appealed to the government of Turks and Caicos to reconsider the charges filed against the detained Americans and expedite their release back to their families. They acknowledged the importance of upholding laws and regulations but asked for the application of mercy in this case due to the lack of malicious intent.
