Florida woman arrested in Turks and Caicos over ammo in luggage receives her sentence
Sharitta Grier was one of five Americans arrested in Turks and Caicos since February for having stray ammo in their luggage
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A Turks and Caicos judge on Thursday handed down a sentence for the fifth and latest American arrested in Turks and Caicos for having ammunition in their luggage since the beginning of the year.
Sharitta Grier, a 45-year-old mother and grandmother from Florida, received a 23-week suspended sentence and must pay a $1,500 fine. She is expected to arrive home in Florida on Thursday night.
"I was shocked. I was actually shocked. I couldn't believe it," Grier told local news reporter Wilkie Arthur of Magnetic Media after her sentencing hearing, adding that she was "afraid" that she would get the mandatory 12-year sentence for tourists accused of carrying ammunition on the islands.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}She was one of five Americans arrested since February on the islands while coming home from their vacations for the same crime, including Bryan Hagerich, 39, of Pennsylvania; Ryan Watson, 40, of Oklahoma; Tyler Wenrich, 31, of Virginia; and Michael Lee Evans, 72, of Texas.
TURKS AND CAICOS BACKTRACKS ON AMMUNITION LAW THAT LANDED AMERICAN TOURISTS BEHIND BARS
Ryan Watson, Sharitta Grier and Bryan Hagerich pictured together in Turks and Caicos. (Handout)
Grier told Arthur that the first thing she is going to do when she returns home to Florida is hug her grandkids "and eat some soul food."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Security found ammo in all five Americans' bags as they were traveling home from the islands. Now, all five have been allowed to return home after getting suspended sentences and being ordered to pay fines.
Grier was arrested in May for having stray bullets in the lining of her bag after she recently purchased a firearm for her own protection. She previously told Fox News Digital in May that her brother owns a store that she sometimes closes at night and wanted a firearm in case of an emergency.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Five Americans have been arrested in Turks and Caicos since 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 )
"No intention to hurt anybody or anything. … I'm afraid of it myself. It's nothing to play around with," Grier said, adding that she "had no other reason" to own a gun other than for her own protection while closing her brother's store.
She added that she has never fired a gun in her life.
FLORIDA WOMAN BECOMES 5TH AMERICAN DETAINED IN TURKS AND CAICOS FOR CARRYING AMMO
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}After her arrest, Grier temporarily lived in a rental home with Watson and Hagerich.
WATCH: Americans support each other after Turks and Caicos arrests
The trio spoke together with Fox News Digital via Zoom and shared how they had become friends over their weeks on the islands awaiting justice.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
"It was important for her to have a room," Watson said of Grier at the time. "After hearing her story and what she went through, being shackled to a chair and having to sleep on the floor … it's heartbreaking. And we wanted to make sure that she had a safe place, a nice, comfortable bed to sleep in and have some privacy. There was no question, and it was a blessing for us to be able to bring Sharitta into the picture because we're all … a support system for one another. It's become a big family."