A Pennsylvania man arrived at the Pittsburgh airport Friday night after he was released from custody on the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI), where he had been detained for having ammunition in his luggage.
Bryan Hagerich — a 39-year-old husband, father of two and former professional baseball player — is one of five Americans arrested and detained on the islands since February for having stray ammunition in their luggage, a crime punishable up to 12 years on the islands.
The other detained Americans are Ryan Watson, 40, of Oklahoma; Sharitta Grier, 45, of Florida; Tyler Wenrich, 31, of Virginia; and Michael Lee Evans, 72, of Texas.
A Turks and Caicos judge issued a suspended 52-month sentence Friday morning to Hagerich, who pleaded guilty to possessing ammunition on the islands. He was also ordered to pay a $6,500 fine.
Bryan Hagerich and his wife, Ashley Hagerich, board a plane in Turks and Caicos, Friday, May 24, 2024. (LUCID Strategies)
Hagerich told Fox News Digital on Thursday that he and his attorneys “made a very, very strong case” in his defense after he pleaded guilty.
Several lawmakers applauded the move to release Hagerich from custody on the islands, allowing him to return to his family in Pennsylvania. A bipartisan congressional delegation had visited TCI on Monday to urge government leaders to release the Americans detained for having stray ammunition in their bags.
“This is great news,” U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said in a statement. “Bryan is coming home to his family. It was an honor to meet Bryan and the other detained Americans in TCI this week.”
“When we met with TCI officials a few days ago, they made clear they wanted this situation resolved,” Fetterman continued. “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. I’m also grateful to the U.S. State Department which has been a critical partner in bringing Bryan home.”
Bryan Hagerich spent three-and-a-half months in Turks and Caicos waiting for his case to be processed. (Family handout)
Fetterman also said he is hopeful that TCI expedites the other cases of detained Americans so they can also be released soon and return to their families.
Republican Pennsylvania Rep. Guy Reschenthaler said while he is “overjoyed” to see Hagerich is returning to Pennsylvania and reuniting with his wife and children, “this terrifying situation should have never happened to him, or the four other Americans still awaiting sentencing.”
“As the Turks and Caicos government works to handle future cases, the British territory must ensure the safety and wellbeing of U.S. tourists. I won’t rest until Americans can once again set foot on their islands without putting their livelihoods at risk,” the congressional representative said.
The cases of the five Americans have slight differences, but all five were arrested while traveling home after security detected the ammunition in their luggage.
FLORIDA WOMAN BECOMES 5TH AMERICAN DETAINED IN TURKS AND CAICOS FOR CARRYING AMMO
Five Americans were arrested in Turks and Caicos in February for carrying ammo in airports on the island. From left to right: Michael Lee Evans (no photo), Bryan Hagerich, Tyler Wenrich, Ryan Watson and Sharitta Grier. (Turks and Caicos Police/ Dimitrios Kambouris )
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Hagerich had stray ammunition from a previous hunting trip in one of the compartments of a large suitcase his family had loaded their belongings into for a family vacation.
Watson had stray ammunition, also left over from a hunting trip, in the lining of his carry-on bag. Grier had stray bullets in the lining of her bag after she recently purchased a firearm for her own protection.
Wenrich has similarly said he had no intention of bringing bullets onto the islands and had no idea he had two bullets in his travel backpack until security found them.
Fox News’ Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
