The recent bomb threat made at the TB Lettsome International Airport is among a wave of bomb threats disrupting airports across the Caribbean and is believed to be connected to the case of four Americans charged in Turks and Caicos for ammunition possession.
The families of Michael Lee Evans, Bryan Hagerich, Tyler Scott Wenrich and Ryan Tyler Watson insist the men were “unjustly detained” after being charged recently for collectively carrying 33 rounds of ammunition to the islands, which have strict laws prohibiting such actions without a license.
Despite the men possibly not being privy to the laws of a foreign country, the United States Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, warns repeatedly on its website of CARICOM’s laws on firearms.
“IF YOU’RE TRAVELING TO THE CARIBBEAN, KNOW THAT IT IS ILLEGAL TO IMPORT OR EXPORT FIREARMS OR AMMUNITION TO OR FROM ANY CARICOM (CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY) MEMBER STATES UNLESS YOU HAVE A FIREARM IMPORT LICENSE OR A FIREARM EXPORT LICENSE GRANTED BY THE APPROPRIATE AUTHORITY (SUCH AS THE COMMISSIONER OF POLICE)”, the website displays.
As the legal proceedings unfolded, the operations of several regional airports were disrupted by a series of emailed bomb threats over the past week and a half. Airports in Bermuda, Anguilla, the British Virgin Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands have all been affected.
One of the emails, seen by 284Media, has named the 4 men mentioned above highlighting their detention as the focus of the orchestraters of the threats to the British Overseas Territories.
The plot appears to be an attempt to circumvent the legal recourse the men face for breaking TCI Immigration Law.
The threats began in April in Turks and Caicos, where a total of four separate bomb scares disrupted both the Providenciales and Grand Turk airports over several days before being deemed hoaxes.
While no actual explosive devices were found in any of the incidents, the bomb scares caused significant disruption, delays and inconvenience to passengers and airport staff across the Caribbean.
Officials said the menacing emails appeared intended to “create chaos and disrupt airport operations.”
This, according to the email, is correct.
The email’s author taunts authorities, acknowledging the losses and inconvenience caused to the airports, airlines and passengers.
An investigation is ongoing as authorities collaborate to identify those responsible for the threats, which Turks and Caicos officials condemned as unacceptable disruptions.