American avoids jail time in Turks and Caicos over ammunition in luggage

A judge in Turks and Caicos ruled that Bryan Hagerich, a Pennsylvania man arrested in the British territory for possessing ammunition, will not have to serve a mandatory minimum of 12 years in prison and will get a suspended sentence. CBS News' Manuel Bojorquez reports.

#news #world #travel

[roselee]

Why would 5 people have accidentally carried ammo

[jblkcns]

These people get on my nerves thinking they can do whatever they want in other people's country. People "forgetting" they have live ammunition in their bags is sketchy as hell.

[eagagt]

People who don’t clean out their bags after a trip are just lazy.

[GivePeaceAChance]

How can one not know they have ammo in their luggage?? That doesn't sound like responsible gun ownership to me.

[livelaughlove]

My aunt had bullets in her bag that she didn’t use in years. She got stopped in Jamaica. My question was, how come we were able to get through the airport in Houston without them noticing the bullets.

[michaelwall]

That’s the most absurd excuse I’ve ever heard! How do you forget you have amo in your luggage 🙄

[tiar]

The "exceptional circumstances" (and hence the real reason he's not receiving a long-term prison sentence) seems to be just what they said at the end: money via tourism. It's a real bad look to send someone to prison for twelve years on a tiny island nation. One must remember that it's costly to hold someone in prison (depending on the location, of course), some places costing tens of thousands, even over a hundred thousand a year--which isn't likely to be the case here--but still they have a virtual guarantee of money if the person pays the fine, and it puts them out of danger from being labeled as a "dangerous place to go" from a powerful country, and one has to remember that if one country does that, some others may follow, too, thus damaging them further. Still, tourists should always check and double-check their carry-on luggage much more carefully than these people did! That part was extremely lazy and irresponsible on their part, considering that they're not only going to another country, but boarding an airplane as well.

[stanleycoleman]

Having to pay a fine makes the most sense to me. It acts as a deterrent without scaring away tourists and helps boost the local economy.

[vistalite]

Time in a foreign prison would help these folks learn to be responsible gun owners. My gun nut buddies have always been robotic about following all gun ownership rules and protocols from the time we were kids until now. The younger generation seem to lack respect for their firearms.

[kerrialexander]

What about the other Americans? Let them pay fines…important lessons have been learned, I’m sure.

[jelena]

Unfortunately, they're desensitized to the danger of ammunition.

[reecom]

Much ado about nothing! Everyone goes home after paying a small fine!

[Commut]

Stupidity is often painful. It'seasyto lead an organized life including completely stripping your luggage after a trip before the next one. Every G.I. who deployed overseas can do it therefore so can anyone else. If you know you aren't intelligent or organized, don't use your luggage to carry shooting gear and give it a separate case or bag (many are sold for that purpose because many people legally travel with firearms, for example on safari).

[ducpat]

How did Gunpowder (ammo) get through TSA on the USA side.? We should all be worried about this.

[blr]

An increase in armed robberies and murders are serious issues. The guns and ammunitions used in crimes are smuggled into the country. As the state department noted travelers should respect other nations laws.

[danielmartin]

Im gald he's free. Now, what about the others? Get them out of there

[terpmaniac]

Brittney Griner get 9years for having a cannabis vape and most americans said she got what she deserved. I wonder why?

[christieprince]

Americans are armed to the teeth. So to those Americans carrying Guns is not really a big deal.

[ginth]

Why was it not caught by our TSA? Thats the real question we should be asking 🤷‍♂️

[Visionary]

WHY was Brian Hagerich granted clemency to the point that he only had to pay a fine and leave, but the other American citizens are not granted that same treatment? Notice how CBS news only showed him with his family (young children and wife)? If all 5 U.S. citizens weren't given the same treatment, Hagerich should not have gotten special treatment, at all.