Two American men facing 12 years in prison in the Turks and Caicos Islands after accidentally carrying ammunition in their luggage have shared their terror at the prospect of going to jail.
Ryan Watson, 40, and Bryan Hagerich, 39, both parents of two young children, have spent months on the Caribbean islands after their arrests, awaiting their fate as their cases move through the legal system.
speaking in NewsNationCuomo, of the Airbnb they both share, Bryan said he is “absolutely terrified” by the prospect of going to prison and warned others: “It can happen to you.” For those who don’t believe it can be done, it certainly can.’
It comes as his ordeal has sparked outrage in the United States, while several airports and schools in the Turks and Caicos Islands have received bomb threats demanding his release.
In response, Bryan and Ryan told DailyMail.com on Tuesday that they “condemn” the threats, saying: “We have nothing to do with them and we hope the authorities bring the perpetrators to justice.”
Bryan Hagerich (left) and Ryan Watson (right) face 12 years in prison in Turks and Caicos after loose bullets were found in their luggage.
Bryan, a former baseball professional, said he is “absolutely terrified” at the prospect of going to prison and warned others: “It can happen to you.” For those who don’t believe it can be done, it certainly can.
Ryan Watson (pictured with his wife Valerie and their two young children) said he and Bryan don’t know what their fate will be and, despite months on the islands, “there are still a lot of unknowns.”
Speaking with Chris Cuomo, parents were asked how they would respond to those they feel deserve jail time for violating local laws.
“We’re all human, we all make mistakes,” Bryan said.
Both men had been on holiday in the islands with their families before they were arrested, and airport staff caught them on their departing flights and immediately arrested them.
Ryan said he’s still confused about how the ammunition ended up in his luggage, something he’s never done before despite having hunted “his whole life.”
“From the bottom of my heart, I don’t remember ever putting the ammunition in that bag,” he said.
‘I remember one time I took that bag on a deer hunting trip last November…Personally, I never remember putting the ammunition in the bag.
“(The bag) went through TSA in Oklahoma City,” he said, adding that they initially thought screeners had stopped it looking for his wife’s makeup kit.
The men have fallen under a strict law in Turks and Caicos introduced in 2022, which increased the punishment for possession of firearms and ammunition to a 12-year sentence.
When asked about facing more than a decade behind bars, Bryan said he is “absolutely terrified.”
“To think that the next 12 years of my life would be separated from my family, I won’t be able to see my daughter graduate from high school, let alone kindergarten,” she said.
Bryan recently moved into an AirBnB with Ryan Watson (right), who faces the same charges, and the two men showed off their cramped space while awaiting sentencing in a previous interview.
Former baseball pro Bryan, who now works for a nursing home provider, said he is terrified at the prospect of missing out on his children’s childhood.
Ryan, pictured with his wife Valerie, said the ordeal is draining them emotionally and financially, as Ryan said it is something they will “never recover from.”
‘Everything we have worked for all our lives to get to this point, raising our young children, being parents, and it is my role as a parent that I take on the responsibility of providing protection.
“Not being able to be there for that is just terrifying.”
The parents are waiting in limbo for their fate, and Bryan says they are left in the dark with “a lot of unknowns” while staying in an Airbnb.
As their ordeal makes headlines, many have reacted with outrage after seeing the 12-year sentence they face, and Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt said he is working for their release.
In an appearance Tuesday with tomorrow in americaStitt called his accusations “absurd.”
However, the backlash has also led to a series of chilling bomb threats that will reportedly be sent to officials, airports and schools on the islands, demanding his release.
“If these men do not return home by June, we will move on to our second phase,” read part of the threat, seen by DailyMail.com.
“This is your last warning.”
As Turks and Caicos media outlets report on the threats, Bryan and Ryan told DailyMail.com in a statement that they “condemn” the incident in the strongest terms.
“We have nothing to do with them and we hope that the authorities bring the perpetrators to justice,” the statement said.
“Our families use the Turks and Caicos Islands airports, we are parents of young children and we take the safety of the TCI Islands and its nationals seriously.”
After their arrests, the parents were briefly held in the Turks and Caicos Jail before their release on bail.
Ryan Watson and his wife Valerie (pictured together arriving on vacation in the Turks and Caicos Islands) were arrested on April 11, but their charges were later dropped and they were allowed to return to their children.
Last week, the two men showed off their cramped sleeping arrangement on Good Morning America, with two small single beds side by side in one room.
Despite her ordeal, Ryan said sharing the house with someone going through the same circumstances has been comforting.
“This is probably the loneliest I’ve ever been in my entire life,” he said.
“But having someone who is going through the same thing as you gives you a little support.”
In an interview with DailyMail.com the week before his original sentencing, which the judge delayed two weeks later, Bryan added that despite the support, being away from his family has been devastating.
‘As a father, it is my responsibility to provide for my family, protect them and support them in every way imaginable. And for me now, 75 days of not being able to do that, it’s just been catastrophic,” he said.
Ashley Hagerich, both parents of two young children, said she and Bryan’s children were left confused and upset about why their father never returned home with them.
“The first question I get asked at the beginning of every day, and the last question I get asked when I put my kids to bed at night, is ‘when is my dad coming home?'” she said.
Bryan has since missed both of his children’s birthdays and said he is terrified of missing out on his childhood if he is sentenced to the full 12-year sentence.
“Twelve years is a long time, and all those special things that you look forward to as a parent, knowing that you potentially couldn’t be there for them, that’s what keeps me up at night,” he said.
