TCI News
Belief that ‘Thug drugs’ fueling crime crisis in Turks and Caicos
#Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands – October 13, 2019 — In Turks and Caicos there is undoubtedly a violent crime crisis. While the idea of a drug-fuelled resistance to law and order was rejected as the reason for the surge in gun related and retaliatory crime which has given the country its highest murder count, ever… everyone agrees the behavior of the offenders is unexpected, unnecessary and frighteningly unpredictable.
Street savvy observers tell Magnetic Media that bad minded men in the Turks and Caicos Islands are being further radicalized by two illegal drugs: Molly and Flakka.
“That type of drug with gun in your hand; with these fellas anything is possible that is why there is no regard for the pastor, there is no regard for nobody right now because they are not really themselves. It’s a mind transformer in the negative direction.”
Molly or Ecstasy was outlawed in the 1980’s and is a psychoactive drug which in its pure form is supposed to make one more empathetic.
The drug pills our young men and women are popping today are not pure; they are dangerous synthetic imposters responsible for corrupting emotional stability. Pill sales are booming everywhere as a part of a multi-billion-dollar global industry.
“If you would notice from some of the court lists there’s a lot of people who have been getting arrested for drugs coming through couriers. You see a lot of charges for illegal importation, wrongful importation, no declaration and those customs charges… that’s what they are, pills! American contaminated drugs taking them into a different level.”
When it comes to Flakka, it too is synthetic or man-made. In a CNN news item from 2015, it was said, flakka gives users “what feels like the strength and fury of the Incredible Hulk.”
Magnetic Media asked the question of our source: “Is the surge in violent crime and vicious attacks organized?”
The answer given was “no” and the reason for the negative response could likely be more disconcerting.
“What I am gathering is that for the past two or three years, there has been a continuous influx of pills, Molly, Flakka and that kind of stuff coming in from America.”
Drug dealers are also coming from Haiti said our source; it is big business and easy money.
Meanwhile, Molly and Flakka pills are giving users a dark sense of invincibility and an overcharged proclivity toward violence.
Definitive research on the link between Molly, Flakka and violence is hard to come by but there was an interesting article published by the Huffington Post in 2011.
The article, which centered on the question of pill drugs being linked to an uptick in violent crime in Oakland, California featured a poem written by an inmate. A few of the stanzas gave a grim view as the writer warned not to take the pills:
A pill is mixed with every drug except for weed
The reason it keeps you up all night is cause of the speed
Whatever mood you in, the pill gives you more of that feeling
So if you mad and violent then you might go start killin’
By De Angelo published on HuffPost.com, 2011
The news article highlights the writings of those who have experienced, in some way the emotionally stimulating cocktail of drugs which give users greater courage for all of the wrong things.
“…and they write often taking the pills to ‘get up the heart’ for committing robberies, car-jackings, and worse – revenge killings.”
Sheerly Avni, the contributing writer of HuffPost.com said: “they already think no one cares about what they do. Now they have found a drug that keeps them from caring as well.”
Our source unwittingly corroborates these established news organisations and other professional commentaries: “Weed is a calmer, cocaine was here for a while but crackheads on coke you would see them on the streets and stuff but this new drug, new in our territory cause it recently started to creep up on us, is kicking in and giving these fellas a different rush, a different high, a different speed and what happens is they think they are on top of the world and that type of drug with gun in your hand, anything is possible.”
The Turks and Caicos Islands Government must now catch up and work to educate in order to eradicate this hidden demon which is possessing and persuading younger men to make aggressive or homicidal decisions.
“So, we have a two-fold problem that I don’t think the government is really educated on how to deal with it. It’s a drug, those pills they are the issue and they are clouding and damaging our young men and sending them into this rush to steal, rush to hold up…”
In the past 72-hours there have been reports of at least 10 incidents to Magnetic Media including armed robberies, aggravated assault, home invasion, a drug-induced frenzy and a fatal shooting.
PRESS RELEASE
MINISTRY OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands, 25 April 2024 – The Ministry of Health and Human Services is issuing a public advisory regarding a recent increase in chicken pox cases, particularly within school communities in the regions of Grand Turk and Providenciales. The Ministry is actively monitoring the situation and is working closely with affected schools to provide support and education aimed at preventing further spread of the virus.
Chicken pox, caused by the varicella-zoster virus, is a highly contagious infection characterized by a distinctive rash of itchy red spots or blisters. Transmission occurs via droplets, aerosols, or direct contact with respiratory secretions, and almost always produces clinical disease in susceptible individuals. While mostly a mild disorder in childhood, varicella tends to be more severe in adults. It may be fatal, especially in neonates and in immunocompromised persons. The Ministry urges parents, teachers, and the general public to remain vigilant and familiarize themselves with the signs and symptoms of chicken pox, which may include:
- Rash: The primary symptom of chicken pox is a rash that typically begins as small red spots, which then develop into fluid-filled blisters over several days.
- Fever: Children with chicken pox may experience a mild to moderate fever, often preceding the appearance of the rash.
- Fatigue: Some individuals may feel generally unwell, tired, or lethargic.
- Loss of Appetite: A decreased desire to eat may accompany other symptoms of chicken pox.
Management aims to relieve symptoms and reduce the risk of complications and may include:
- drinking plenty of fluid (try popsicles if your child is not drinking) to avoid dehydration.
- taking paracetamol to help with pain and discomfort.
- cut your child’s fingernails and put socks on their hands at night to stop them scratching.
- use cooling creams or gels e.g. Calamine lotion
- speak to your health care provider about using antihistamine medicine to help itching.
- bathe in cool water and pat the skin dry (do not rub)
- dress in loose clothes.
- do not use ibuprofen unless advised to do so by a doctor, as it may cause serious skin infections.
- do not give aspirin to children under 16.
- do not go near newborn babies, or anyone who is pregnant or has a weakened immune system, as chickenpox can be dangerous for them.
- do not scratch the spots, as scratching can cause scarring.
To mitigate the spread of chicken pox within schools and communities, the Ministry emphasizes the importance of practicing good hygiene habits, including frequent handwashing with soap and water, covering coughs and sneezes with a tissue or elbow, and avoiding close contact with infected individuals.
In the event that a child exhibits symptoms of chicken pox, parents and caregivers are advised to keep them at home and seek medical attention promptly. A sick leave for a period of 14 days is usually given. After the 14 day sick leave period, the individual must return to the physician or the public health nurse at one of the primary care clinics to obtain a fit for work or school certificate allowing them re-entry back into school or work. Anyone returning earlier than this time or without this certificate should not be allowed in school so as to prevent spread to other children. Additionally, it is crucial to inform school authorities to prevent further transmission among classmates and staff.
The Ministry of Health and Human Services is committed to ensuring the health and well-being of all citizens, and will continue to work diligently to address this current situation. For further information and guidance on chicken pox prevention and management, please visit Turks and Caicos Islands Ministry of Health and Human Services Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/tciministryofhealth/.
Wilkie Arthur
Freelance Court Correspondent
#TurksandCaicos, April 25, 2024 – He was busted at the Howard Hamilton Providenciales International Airport on Friday, April 16, 2024.
He allegedly had in his luggage four (4) rounds of 6.5mm ammunition on his departure to his homeland in Oklahoma in the United States of America (USA).
Ryan Watson and his wife were arrested and placed into police lock up. Both were later granted police bail, and upon return to police station the Monday after the couple’s arrest, the husband alone was charged by detective Police Constable Kimberlee Markland for
unlawful possession of the four rounds of ammunition.
Watson was escorted to court on Tuesday, April 23rd, placed before the learned Chief Magistrate Mr. Jolyon Hatmin and remanded to His Majesty’s Prison until his sufficiency hearing on June 7, this (2024) year.
His counsel, Mr. Oliver Smith KC and his junior assistant Mrs. Kimone Tennant immediately sought bail for him in the Supreme Court which was heard the following day (Wednesday April 24) before her Ladyship Ms. Tanya Lobban-Jackson and was granted bail, without hassle in the amount or $15,000.00 cash or surety.
The Crown, in the person of senior public prosecutor Ms. Tassja Mitchell did not oppose bail.
Magnetic Media can report that once again on the afternoon of the Tuesday April 24th, after the accused RYAN TYLER WATSON, 41 was remanded by the Magistrate’s court, the U.S. Embassy issued an warning to it’s citizens and travelers to carefully check their bags when traveling to Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) as TCI authorities are strictly enforcing firearm and ammunition laws and if found you could go to prison for 12 years.
A real question of great concern and public importance is: should the TCI courts sentence tourists to the full mandatory minimum of 12 years imprisonment for simple possession firearm and/or ammunition.
The succinct answer is: Yes!
The Court of Appeal, just last month said in its written judgment that “ALL PERSONS,” including tourist/visitors must go to prison if found guilty or pleas guilty to firearm and ammunition offences.
However, there remains the concern about how much time in prison a judge should give a visitor regardless of the existence of exceptional circumstances.
Should the judge imprison a visitor to the territory, who may have been wrongly informed, for example, the full mandatory minimum term or must a reduced prison term be imposed.
If TCI judges start to give less than the mandatory minimum to tourists/visitors, it is being strong and widely advocated by senior defense attorneys that the same must apply to local or residents of these Islands, who may also present exceptional circumstances.
Arguments about the equity in delivery of justice is what drove the question to the Court of Appeal late in 2023. The decision came this past February.
‘We cannot find ourselves sentencing tourists regardless of exceptional circumstances to lesser sentences, and when those same exceptional circumstances are found in local cases, it’s being ignored by our judges.’
Human Rights Attorney, Sheena Mair has on more than one occasion argued this point; including in firearm and ammunition bail applications. She would put the very same judges and prosecutors from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecution on the spot by reminding the judges and the prosecutors that precedent has been set.
‘You’ve just granted bail to a tourist for firearm and ammunition but now here’s a local person, same charge but because he’s a local he can’t get bail? He has to be remanded pending a trial that could take years before it’s heard?’
Mair has valiantly outlined the wrong in this and clearly stated this practice is “not fair” and it’s “not proper administration of justice in the Turks and Caicos Islands.”
Ms. Mair further complained that tourists would plea guilty to possession of firearm and ammunition and be released on bail pending sentencing but as for a local, he or she has to wait on remand at the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation pending sentencing.
The attorney criticizes the optics of such decisions and is on record reminding the Judge that the Court of Appeal has already set out that the law applies to everyone; visitors and locals alike.
A police statement issued Wednesday April 24 informs: “Today (April 24th), Mr. Watson appeared in the Supreme Court and, following a bail application, was granted $15,000 bail with the following conditions:
1) Not travel out of TCI without the court’s permission.
2) Surrender his passport and all other travel documents to the court
3) Report to Grace Bay Police Station on Tuesdays and Thursdays between the hours of 8 am-4 pm,
4) Reside at the given address in Providenciales; any address change will be provided before the court.”
The American from Oklahoma whose story is trending in the US and has been carried by leading news networks was joined by a host of loved ones at the Courthouse.
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