American arrested in Turks and Caicos Islands for ammunition found in bag receives 52-week suspended prison sentence

An American tourist who was arrested in the Turks and Caicos Islands earlier this year for possession of ammunition, was given a 52-week suspended sentence on Friday and is expected to be released, a spokesperson said on social media. A spokesman for Pennsylvania’s Bryan Hagerich initially said the sentence was 52 months, then corrected the length of the sentence.

Hagerich was one of several Americans faces a potential mandatory minimum sentence of 12 years in prison for charges related to munitions on British soil. According to spokesman Jonathan Franks, the judge ruled that the case was based on exceptional circumstances and that the long sentence would be arbitrary. The father of two will also have to pay a fine of $6,700.

Hagerich had pleaded guilty to possessing 20 shotgun shells, according to the Turks and Caicos government. He was arrested in February when the ammunition was found in his checked bag, and he said he spent eight nights in jail before being released on bail.

“Frankly, some of the darkest, most difficult times of my life,” Hagerich told CBS News last month.

Hagerich told media he didn’t know he brought the hunting ammunition on a family vacation to the Turks and Caicos Islands, but he recognized it when authorities found it in his bag.

Three more AmericansCases are underway in the archipelago southeast of the Bahamas. A fifth American, also recently charged, was allowed to return home for medical reasons.

These cases have attracted the attention of members of Congress, who recently visited the Turks and Caicos Islands and met with officials. Sen. John Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat, released a statement Friday expressing gratitude for the judge’s ruling.

“When we met with TCI officials a few days ago, they made it clear that they wanted this situation resolved,” Fetterman said in a statement. “They recognized that Bryan and the other detained Americans are not arms dealers – they are simply people who made a mistake.”

Before Friday’s sentence was handed down, Congressman Hagerich called on the Biden administration to block Americans from traveling to the Turks and Caicos Islands. Republican Rep. Guy Reschenthaler of Pennsylvania told CBS News he wants the U.S. State Department to issue a travel ban order for the country.

“There is no question that Americans should not travel to the Turks and Caicos until two things happen,” Reschenthaler told CBS News senior transportation correspondent Kris Van Cleave on Thursday. “First, all of our detainees must be released immediately to the United States, and the Turks and Caicos Islands must repeal this draconian law which is completely out of step with other countries.”

The State Department has put in place a travel advisory for the Turks and Caicos Islands urging Americans to exercise increased caution there, which is similar to what the department has put in place for some European countries and other places.

In a similar case last year, an Indiana man served more than five months in prison.

“No clean running water, you’re kind of exposed to the environment 24/7, mosquitoes and tropical diseases are a real concern,” Michael Grim told CBS News.