Many of you know dave7378 through his presence in the forum. I happen to know him better than most of you and I can tell you that he is a really good guy.

Dave was arrested for possession of ammunition and spent six days in jail and has been released on bail but he had to surrender his passport and he is awaiting trial. If found guilty, he could spend twelve years in prison. There is no plea bargain system in that country.

Dave has already reached out to people of influence he knows, pulled all the strings he can and part of that is contacting me so that I can spread the word to the members and readers of this forum. I will be able to share more details after he clarifies things with his lawyer.

What can we do? First of all, we are not asking for monetary contributions. Money is the least of the issue. The forum has many attorneys who may be able to offer advice, although I realize that in a matter such as this, there are constraints as to what they may be able to offer, without actually representing someone charged with a crime. Being an international matter, though, may negate all of that. I don't know, of course.

The economy of Turks and Caicos is dominated by tourism, offshore finance and fishing. The US dollar is the main currency used on the islands.

Dave and his family have been pumping money into the economy of these islands for twelve years. As you can see above, these islands rely on tourism to survive. Also, there is recent precedent for an American being found in possession of firearms and ammunition- in rather large quantity- and the outcome was positive. Dave was found to have 44 rounds of ammunition at the bottom of a backpack, which, by the way, our stalwart TSA at JFK missed when he was leaving the US.

At this time, Dave does have his cellphone and can make and receive calls. He has internet access as well and he can see this thread and can respond.

This was simply a mistake. Dave had no firearm, just the ammunition, which he didn't realize he had, of course.

Please feel free to comment in this thread, and anyone who may have advice can post it here or, if they feel more comfortable with it being out of the public eye, can contact me via the email address in my profile. For non-members who read the forum, simply scroll to the bottom of the page and click the 'Contact Us' link.

This is not coming from one of those scam emails- the kind which say "Hey, grandma, I've been arrested. Can you help me out?" I have spoken directly with Dave this morning, after first calling his business and confirming the email I received from Dave. This is legitimate and the potential consequences are profound.

More information to come

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Thanks for this. If there is anything I can do to help, please let me (or Dave) know. I am not knowledgeable on T&C law, but I can do research.

A

Very sorry to read this. All I can do is hope for the best possible outcome.

I don't have much to offer in the form of advice, but I hope this is resolved quickly, and Dave can get back home soon.

Of course, if there is anything I can do to help, just let me know. Wishing the best for you, Dave.

Wishing Dave all the best.

I'll help any way I can.

Longshot but perhaps if Dave is employed by a larger corporation maybe they could get involved on his behalf.

He's a business owner. There is no corporation to which he can turn for assistance.

Perhaps contact our Embassy.

A quick search of Consular Agency Consular Agency in Providenciales states Temporary Suspension of Services.

For U.S. citizens who are victims of crime or have urgent medical or welfare issues, please contact the U.S. Embassy’s Consular Section directly at 242-322-1181 and ACSNassau@state.gov.

Contact the U.S. Embassy in The Bahamas, located at 42 Queen Street (across from the British Colonial Hilton Hotel), Nassau; telephone: 242-322-1181; after hours emergency telephone: 242-357-7004; ACS unit fax: 242-356-7174; e-mail: ACSNassau@state.gov ; web page: https://bs.usembassy.gov. The Turks & Caicos Consular Agency is located at 2 Ventura Ct., Grace Bay Suite 102E, Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands; telephone: 649-232-5713; e-mail: ACSNassau@state.gov .

I certainly wish him the best. Perhaps the best hope is for an official response that takes into account the inadvertent nature of the offence and a desire not to alienate American tourism.

Local US Consulate or Embassy (if there is one) that may have some juice. His state rep may have a line to that country and/or its ambassador or someone like that. USUALLY this is a shakedown for money from locals and money often fixes things. Not sure about that area though, have not been there.

quote:

Originally posted by mjlennon:
Perhaps contact our Embassy.

And his Congressman

does he have contacts at the state department ?

A nightmare to say the least. I'm guessing all avenues of American govt. representation on the islands have been explored. Para, if cash is needed to help finance a legal fight, it goes without saying we're there. I hope Dave will soon prevail and come home swiftly.

I'd hope Dave's Congressman and Senator might be able to provide some inertia for effort that the State Dept. might be able to bring to to bear. Just checked his profile and I see he lists his location as Hampton Bays, NY. If that's his primary residence, Nick LaLota is his Representative and as I recall, a pretty solid 'R'.

Hang in there, Dave...

Nothing I can do but wishing for a positive outcome for him. Man, what a mess, when you're stuck in some foreign country being charged with a crime, when it was just an innocent and minor mistake.

Sorry to hear this. I'm not in a position to offer anything but moral support, unfortunately.

flashguy

This sounds crazy, but it just may work. I was reading up on this and it looks like US citizens can get emergency passport replacements by mail from the US embassy in Nassau. I wonder if he could just do this and then charter a boat to get out of that jurisdiction. He'd just need to make it to Puerto Rico.

I got popped by TSA for a few (I think three) loose rounds of .223 in Phoenix on a flight to ORD and then BER. They couldn't have cared less and we chatted about our AR builds for a few. Glad it happened in Phoenix and not Chicago or Berlin, though.

In Dave's case, however, 44 rounds is probably a little harder to explain.

I have no advice that hasn’t already been suggested but certainly hope he is able to navigate this mistake with a positive outcome. I can’t imagine being in that situation.

He absolutely has to call his Congressman.

quote:

Originally posted by Aglifter:
He absolutely has to call his Congressman.

And Senators, as well as state Governor & Legislators.

Wishing Dave the best.