Skip to content
NOWCAST Pittsburgh's Action News 4 at 9am Sunday
Watch on Demand
Advertisement

'We are not bad people': Couple detained in Turks and Caicos after bullets found in carry-on bag

Valerie and Ryan Watson's Turks and Caicos vacation turned into a nightmare after hunting bullets were unknowingly left in their bag

'We are not bad people': Couple detained in Turks and Caicos after bullets found in carry-on bag

Valerie and Ryan Watson's Turks and Caicos vacation turned into a nightmare after hunting bullets were unknowingly left in their bag

THAT TURNED NIGHTMARE. WELL, WE WERE HERE AT WILL ROGERS WORLD AIRPORT FOR THE EMBARK NATIONAL MOMENT WHEN VALERIE WATSON HUGGED HER BABIES FOR THE FIRST TIME IN WEEKS. NOW SHE TELLS ME THAT THE FIGHT ISN’T OVER AS SHE WORKS TO GET HER IMPRISONED HUSBAND HOME. WE KNOW THAT GOD IS STILL WORKING AND HE’S WORKING THROUGH US IN EMOTIONAL REUNIFICATION. I’VE BEEN THINKING ABOUT THIS MOMENT FOR A WHILE. I DIDN’T KNOW WHEN IT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN. I WAS PREPARED AND TO ALSO BE ARRESTED YESTERDAY. VALERIE WATSON RAN TO HUG HER TWO KIDS, VAN AND ELLIE, AFTER WEEKS OUT OF THE COUNTRY. WATSON AND HER HUSBAND RYAN WERE HELD IN TURKS AND CAICOS AFTER BULLETS WERE FOUND IN THEIR LUGGAGE THEY SAY WERE INADVERTENTLY LEFT AFTER A HUNTING TRIP. IT’S A SERIOUS OFFENSE ON THOSE ISLANDS WITH A MINIMUM PRISON SENTENCE OF 12 YEARS. OFFICIALS RELEASED VALERIE MONDAY BUT LOCKED UP HER HUSBAND, RYAN WATSON, SAYS SHE’S BEEN ANTICIPATING THIS MOMENT OF EMBRACING HER CHILDREN. I DON’T EVEN KNOW IF I HAVE WORDS TO DESCRIBE IT. JUST GETTING TO HOLD THEM AGAIN. IT JUST FILLED MY MOMMA HEART. IT MADE ME SO HAPPY AND IT JUST GIVES ME A LOT OF COMFORT KNOWING THAT I GET TO BE HERE WITH THEM NOW AND UM, BUT MY WIFE’S HEART IS STILL BREAKING BECAUSE RYAN’S NOT NOT WITH ME NOW. THE WATSON’S HAVE SOME HELP IN THEIR FIGHT. KOCO GOT A COPY OF THIS LETTER GOVERNOR KEVIN STITT SENT TO GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS IN TURKS AND CAICOS ON APRIL 16TH. HE CALLS WATSON AN AVID OUTDOORSMAN, ARGUING THE AMMUNITION WAS AN OVERSIGHT, NOT AN ATTEMPT TO BREAK THE LAW. SENATOR MARKWAYNE MULLIN OFFICE ALSO TOLD KOCO THEY’VE BEEN IN TOUCH WITH THE FAMILY AND ARE DOING EVERYTHING THEY CAN TO HELP THEM GET HOME. ROUTINE HAS NEVER SOUNDED BETTER, BUT I KNOW OUR LIFE IS DIFFERENT AND OUR GOAL IS TO GET RYAN HOME BECAUSE WE CAN’T BE A FAMILY WITHOUT DAD. NOW THERE IS A GOFUNDME TO HELP THE FAMILY AS ALL OF THIS UNFOLDS, WE HAVE THAT LISTED ON
Advertisement
'We are not bad people': Couple detained in Turks and Caicos after bullets found in carry-on bag

Valerie and Ryan Watson's Turks and Caicos vacation turned into a nightmare after hunting bullets were unknowingly left in their bag

An Oklahoma man facing serious charges in Turks and Caicos walked out of jail on bond, but he still can't come home. Valerie Watson hugged her children for the first time in weeks on Tuesday, but her husband, Ryan, remains stuck on the islands after a vacation turned into a nightmare. Valerie said she and Ryan went to Turks and Caicos for a 40th birthday celebration, and they were supposed to come home on Friday, April 12.But four bullets found in their luggage kept that from happening. "Everything was in that bag from the moment we left our house. It went through security in OKC. It never got flagged through TSA," Valerie said. The excitement of coming home to see their children after the vacation quickly turned to chaos when security flagged the couple's carry-on bag. "They pull out a little tiny Ziplock bag, and it had something gold in it. I couldn’t tell what it was," Valerie said. "I looked at Ryan and asked, I said, 'What are those?' And he was like, ‘I think those are my hunting, deer hunting, bullets.'" Valerie said they had no idea the bullets were there, and they were left in there from a previous hunting trip. The situation is a serious crime in Turks and Caicos, and the couple was detained. Since then, two different locals put up "surety bonds," so they didn't have to stay behind bars. One of the locals was their driver during the vacation, and the other was a local restaurant owner whom they didn't know."The fact that these people are willing to help us in this situation is so humbling because they’re complete strangers to us, and they’re taking a huge risk," Valerie said. "I just want people to know that we are not bad people. This was truly an honest mistake. Ryan is really a responsible gun owner. He really is. We have a safe. Everything is always locked up. It truly was an oversight." While Ryan is out on bail, his wife said his future is unclear, and he could face 12 years in jail. "It's hard to imagine that four hunting rounds can land Ryan in prison for 12 years. I can't even fathom that that is our reality, but that's our reality at this moment," Valerie said. Ryan's next court date is June 7.

An Oklahoma man facing serious charges in Turks and Caicos walked out of jail on bond, but he still can't come home.

Valerie Watson hugged her children for the first time in weeks on Tuesday, but her husband, Ryan, remains stuck on the islands after a vacation turned into a nightmare. Valerie said she and Ryan went to Turks and Caicos for a 40th birthday celebration, and they were supposed to come home on Friday, April 12.

Advertisement

But four bullets found in their luggage kept that from happening.

"Everything was in that bag from the moment we left our house. It went through security in OKC. It never got flagged through TSA," Valerie said.

The excitement of coming home to see their children after the vacation quickly turned to chaos when security flagged the couple's carry-on bag.

"They pull out a little tiny Ziplock bag, and it had something gold in it. I couldn’t tell what it was," Valerie said. "I looked at Ryan and asked, I said, 'What are those?' And he was like, ‘I think those are my hunting, deer hunting, bullets.'"

Valerie said they had no idea the bullets were there, and they were left in there from a previous hunting trip.

The situation is a serious crime in Turks and Caicos, and the couple was detained.

Since then, two different locals put up "surety bonds," so they didn't have to stay behind bars. One of the locals was their driver during the vacation, and the other was a local restaurant owner whom they didn't know.

"The fact that these people are willing to help us in this situation is so humbling because they’re complete strangers to us, and they’re taking a huge risk," Valerie said. "I just want people to know that we are not bad people. This was truly an honest mistake. Ryan is really a responsible gun owner. He really is. We have a safe. Everything is always locked up. It truly was an oversight."

While Ryan is out on bail, his wife said his future is unclear, and he could face 12 years in jail.

"It's hard to imagine that four hunting rounds can land Ryan in prison for 12 years. I can't even fathom that that is our reality, but that's our reality at this moment," Valerie said.

Ryan's next court date is June 7.