News
New Appointments at Experience Turks & Caicos
KITCHANDRA PENN-MCDONALD appointed as Human Resources Manager
Kitchandra Penn-McDonald, Human Resources Manager, Experience Turks and Caicos
Experience Turks and Caicos is pleased to welcome Mrs. Kitchandra Penn-McDonald, Human Resources Manager, to their team, effective today, December 4th, 2023. Mrs. Penn-McDonald is currently enrolled in a Masters Degree programme in Human Resources Management and Development at the University of Salford, Manchester, Mrs. Penn-McDonald has eight years of experience working in the Human Resources Management.
Before Experience Turks and Caicos, Mrs. Penn-McDonald was Director of Human Resources at Waterloo Hotel Management Limited (Ltd.). She was also employed as the Human Resources Manager at The Sands at Grace Bay. In welcoming Mrs. Penn-McDonald to the team, Ms. Racquel Brown, Change Manager and Interim CEO of Experience Turks and Caicos, said she is pleased to fill this critical position. “Hiring Mrs. Penn-McDonald, Human Resources Manager, is essential for talent recruitment and management to ensure the build-out and success of Experience Turks and Caicos. She will be essential in assisting me in ensuring that the organisational structure is in place to promote and enhance a positive and effective work environment for product development and to market and promote the Turks and Caicos Islands. I look forward to working with Mrs. Penn-McDonald in the coming months,” she said Mrs. Penn-McDonald described her new role as an amazing opportunity. “I am deeply honoured to be the Human Resources Manager for Experience Turks and Caicos. It is an amazing privilege and a great responsibility to take on this job and I will do it with everything I have to the best of my ability for the success of the organisation,” she said.
HELCYANN SELVER appointed as Local Representative
Helcyann Selver, Local Representative, Experience Turks and Caicos
Experience Turks and Caicos is pleased to welcome Miss Helcyann Selver, Local Representative, to their team, effective today, December 5th, 2023. Miss Selver is currently pursuing a Master of Science in Human Services, with a specialisation in Mental Health from Walden University Online and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Benedict College, Columbia, South Carolina. Miss Selver, who is from North Caicos, reports to the Destination Development Department and is responsible for product development in North, Middle and East Caicos.
In welcoming Miss Selver to the team, Ms. Racquel Brown, Change Manager and Interim CEO of Experience Turks and Caicos, said her appointment is in keeping with the thrust to market and promote the Turks and Caicos Islands as multi-island destination. “We are positioning the destination beyond Providenciales as we seek to increase visitation and spend. Developing the tourism product in our sister islands is key to this and, as such, the addition of Miss Selver to our team allows for the enhancement of North, Middle and East Caicos for more activities to increase day tours and to increase spend on island to the benefit of our communities and stakeholders.” she said. Miss Selver said she is excited to develop the tourism product in the sister islands. “It is an amazing opportunity to be a local representative from North Caicos and to be able to help with the development of tourism in my island and the sister islands. It is an honour to be able to be a part of the change that you want to see in our community. In working with Experience Turks and Caicos I now have the opportunity to market and promote my hometown with hopes of attracting not only tourists but to encourage the development of local businesses,” she said.
LAYTON LEWIS appointed as Events Organiser Specialist
Layton Lewis, Events Organiser Specialist, Experience Turks and Caicos
Experience Turks and Caicos is pleased to welcome Mr. Layton Lewis, Events Organiser Specialist, to their team, effective December 4th, 2023. Mr. Lewis holds a Bachelor’s degree in Tourism and Hospitality Management from Mount Saint Vincent University in Canada with a minor in Marketing and an Associate Degree in Business Administration from the Turks and Caicos Community College in Grand Turk. A native of Grand Turk, Mr. Lewis previously worked as a Marketing Executive for the Canadian office of the Turks and Caicos Islands Tourist Board.
In his capacity as Events Organiser Specialist, Mr. Layton will be responsible for planning and coordinating marketing events for Experience Turks and Caicos. In welcoming Mr. Lewis to the team, Ms. Racquel Brown, Change Manager and Interim CEO of Experience Turks and Caicos, said his role is an important one for the organisation. “As the Event’s Organiser Specialist, Mr. Lewis is an important addition to Experience Turks and Caicos due to the diversity of events we will execute. These include, press conferences, hosting visiting Travel Agents and Journalists, Workshops, Stakeholder Meetings. In this role, he will be assisting departments with the planning and execution of all events in the Turks and Caicos Islands and Source markets to ensure all events represent the branding of Experience Turks and Caicos and objective(s) of all events” she said. Mr. Lewis said he is humbled by the opportunity. “I’m eternally grateful and humbled to be hired for the role as Events Organiser Specialist within Experience Turks and Caicos. An opportunity to serve my country in this capacity will not be taken lightly. Thanks be to God, for he is good!”
#TurksandCaicos, May 20, 2024 – The Governor’s Office can confirm that Her Excellency the Governor Dileeni Daniel-
Selvaratnam and the Honourable Premier Charles Washington Misick will this morning receive a US Congressional delegation, who have requested a meeting to discuss the recent arrests of US nationals for possession of ammunition offences.
The US delegation, which arrived yesterday evening, was met by Protocol officials and is due to depart this afternoon.
News
Eleven Senators, Three Governors make appeals for Leniency; Five Americans now face 12 Years in Prison
Deandrea Hamilton
Editor
#TurksandCaicos, May 20, 2024 – US law makers are going to bat bigtime for their citizens detained in the Turks and Caicos for breach of the firearms ordinance, a congressional delegation arrived on Sunday and talk about an amicable conclusion in the controversial court matters.
Here for a meeting set to take place today, the congressional delegation is led by Senator Markwayne Mullin.
Five tourists are facing the 12 year minimum for possession of bullets, they say were inadvertently left in their checked baggage, but they can get a lesser sentence if the judge rules that it is warranted under the ‘Exceptional Circumstances’ clause in the Firearms Ordinance, newly amended and stiffened in 2022.
Eleven U.S. Senators and three State Governors have addressed letters to the TCI government beckoning for leniency in the cases of American citizens charged and detained for breach of Turks and Caicos gun laws which strictly prohibit the possession of unregistered firearms or ammunition; an infraction which carries with it a penalty of 12 years imprisonment.
It became known that at least one governor was communicating with Daleeni Daniel- Selveratnam, Turks and Caicos Governor about the unsettling situation.
J Kevin Stitt, Governor of Oklahoma appeared on television vocalizing his thoughts, calling the mandatory 12 year sentence “absurd.” His letter for leniency was endorsed by Josh Shapiro, Governor of Pennsylvania and Glenn Youngkin, the Governor of Virginia.
“We humbly ask that your government – in its wisdom – temper justice with mercy and recognize that these made mistakes but had no apparent malicious intent,” states the May 14th letter signed by all three governors.
Twelve days before, Senators had already expressed their dire concern in correspondence dated May 2nd.
Magnetic Media obtained that letter which 11 senators have supported; their dispatch issued to the Attorney General of the Turks and Caicos, Rhondalee Braithwaite-Knowles, KC.
Senators Markwayne Mullin, Oklahoma; Robert P. Casey Jr, Pennsylvania; Mark Warner, Virginia; Tim Kaine, Virginia; James Lankford, Oklahoma; Michael Cloud, Texas; John Fetterman, Pennsylvania; Bob Good, Virginia; Guy Reschenthaler, Pennsylvania; Josh Brecheen, Oklahoma and former presidential contender, Ted Cruz of Texas boldly signed the document, with strong words for the TCIG.
“We do not discount the fact that the authorities in Turks and Caicos take the presence of unspent ammunition cartridges seriously to prioritize the safety of its civilians. However, based on our relationships and understanding of the circumstances of these American citizens, we strongly urge you to exercise leniency when reviewing their cases.”
Both letters point to the current good relationship between the Turks and Caicos and the United States as the reason to have the cases of Michael Lee Evans, 72 of Texas; Bryan Hagerich, Pennsylvania; Tyler Wenrich, 31 of Virginia and Ryan Watson, 40 of Oklahoma come to a reasonable conclusion.
Since Monday May 13, added to the four men and despite the media attention and US State Department warnings, Sharitta Grier, 45 of Orlando, Florida was arrested, sentenced and is now out on bail on near identical charges.
She is the fifth American held in recent months for the discovery of ammunition upon departure of the islands.
Grier, was on Thursday May 16 arraigned for allegedly having two bullets in her baggage; detected as she was exiting the Turks and Caicos following a Mother’s Day getaway with her daughter. By Friday, bail had been granted to the woman who is still expressing shock at the gravity of the consequences; a dozen years in a Grand Turk prison.
A week earlier, a Thursday May 8, media release by the Turks and Caicos National Security Council informed of the Attorney General’s report to the group, which included the Premier, Minister of Tourism and Governor on the nuances of the legislation, according to a recent Court of Appeal decision.
“The Attorney-General, in respect of the law applicable to the cases against US Nationals on charges relating to the possession of ammunition, confirmed that an Attorney General’s Reference to the Court of Appeal certified that where a court finds there are exceptional circumstances, the sentencing judge has discretion under the law, to impose a custodial sentence and a fine that are fair and just in the circumstances of each case rather than impose the mandatory minimum. The Chief Justice is advancing sentencing guidelines in this respect.”
On Sunday, Senator Mullin of Oklahoma landed in Provo, with him: “Rep. Reschenthaler of Pennsylvania; Rep. Good of Virginia; Rep. Brecheen of Oklahoma and Rep. Cloud of Texas. They have a few staff members and an escort of four marines. They will be in meetings all day. We are hoping for an agreeable resolution today,” explained a source close to the senate.
We’ve also learned that the Governor of Florida, Ron DeSantis may climb aboard this train in the name of reasonable justice after Floridian, Sharitta Shiniee Grier was last week charged.
On social media, Grier has opened up about her arrest.
“Once the police cuffed my leg to a chair and left me in a room by myself I started crying out to the Good Lord, saying I know you are real but I need you to move for me, right now! I need you to show me a sign that I’m going to be alright.”
Grier explains that before she could wipe away tears, “Mrs. Susan and her husband My Pop Pop” turned up, came to check on her while in police custody and are now lending her moral support.
Court correspondent Wilkie Arthur informed that during Grier’s arraignment, the courtroom was filled with some of the other Americans accused and their families; in her post, she called Ryan (Hagerich) and Bryan (Watson), both men who share a vacation villa as they await verdicts in their bullet possession matters, her ‘brothers.’
“I know it was God who placed them in my life. They have a heart of gold, just like me and I love them. We are family forever.”
It is this kind of solidarity that the defendants hope will work in their favour as their Representatives have reportedly taken advocacy to a new level; landing at the private airport in Providenciales on Sunday to – in person – make appeals on behalf of the five Americans with the hope of seeing them avoid the lengthy prison term mandated by TCI law.
SERVICE WITH PRIDE AND INTEGRITY
***MEDIA RELEASE***
May 18th, 2024.
Following a police shooting incident on May 14th, the Royal Turks and Caicos Islands Police Force (RTCIPF) is now able to name the deceased male subject, with the permission of the family.
The Serious Crime Unit contacted the relatives of the deceased, and formal identification has taken place, with the subject being identified as 14-year-old Antorens Dorcely, also known locally as ‘Toto’.
During this challenging time, the RTCIPF also expressed its deepest condolences to the deceased’s family, and the force will continue to offer support through our Family Liaison Officer.
In light of this incident, the RTCIPF is urging the public to show respect and sensitivity towards the grieving family by refraining from sharing any footage of the deceased on social media.
Sharing such material can cause additional distress and harm. We emphasize the importance of empathy and respect for the family’s privacy as they navigate their grief. The death of any young person is a loss to the TCI.
The RTCIPF is committed and dedicated to conducting a thorough investigation and ensuring that all aspects of the incident are carefully examined and the findings are communicated transparently to the public.
A request has been made to an external police force to conduct a review of the incident. This is a routine procedure and intended to ensure an independent and objective review of the facts. The community’s cooperation and respect during this time are essential. The RTCIPF assures the public that we remain dedicated to upholding justice and accountability.
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