Printed on August 27, 2007
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Locked Up Abroad: Jamaica
TK and her girlfriend are thrown into jail after attempting to smuggle a marijuana filled suitcase back to the US.
Did you see the show or read TK's online interview? What do you think about her story?
45 Replies
August 12, 2009 10:55 PM
When you had to leave your girl how did you feel becasue I am a lesbain myself and I dont know what i would have done if that happen to me
August 15, 2009 11:21 AM
I felt like I was leaving her to fend for herself..and I was worried that the enemies I had made there would attack her when I left,but I realised if I didnt leave I wouldnt be able to help her get out
August 12, 2009 11:08 PM
The show is often cognitively difficult because the actors hardly resemble the subjects, and this episode was the most nonsensical of them all.
August 12, 2009 11:47 PM
I love this show! But this episode left me with a few questions:
How long were KT & Scarlet locked up for? Who actually paid Scarlett's legal fees/fines?
And all of the episodes tend to have the same thing happen half-way through:There they are, duped in the 11th hour into smuggling more contraband than they originally greed to. Why is it that none of the smugglers realize that it's not too late at the airport to ask for help?
August 15, 2009 11:23 AM
Scarlett's grandmother and Uncle both put up the money to get her out. As far as getting help at the airport that was a no-go. as far as they were concerned we were criminals
August 16, 2009 11:18 PM
Thank you for your reply! How long were you & Scarlet incarcerated for?
August 16, 2009 11:26 PM
Not too long..as many had been there for months...but not short enuff..just one night sleeping on a concrete floor can feel like eternity...one week fighting for your life feels like forever...2 weeks eating just once a day makes your pants start falling off of you and we were in there longer than that.
August 16, 2009 6:06 PM
MY SENTIMENTS EXACTLY..........IDIOTS... ITS LIKE WATCHING A BUNCH OF AMATEUR CRIMINALS WITH NO COMMON SENSE.
August 16, 2009 11:09 PM
Thats is the point we werent proffessional criminals...just regular people caught up in serious life altering situations. When there is no pressure one can always say how they will act what they would do...but until your in the fire you really dont know.
August 17, 2009 3:11 AM
I know exactly what u mean when u say that "When there is no pressure one can always say how they will act and what they would do...but until your in the fire you really dont know." Well i've been in the fire...I know what its like to do HARD TIME. So lemme ask you two questions and please don't take offense to the first one. #1. Do you honestly think that your story belongs on this show? you did a couple months (at most) in a Jamaican prison....big deal...that's a vacation compared to what some other people on this show have been through. #2. If you had such a bad feeling that you might get caught, then why didn't you just check in both bags yourself in order to keep Scarlet out of it?... it makes no sense for both of you to check your bags in and both take the risk when you could have done it by yourself?? you could of at least put both bricks of weed just in your bag, that way there would have been NO risk put on scarlett.
August 19, 2009 7:22 PM
First let me say...you have a right to your opinion..so offend me?..nope. Next..pain is relative..suffering is relative..we can go back and forth all day on who hurt more and how many others lost more than I or her..but we lost...and we hurt..I could say if you havent been locked up outside of the U.S. than you havent really done hard time..in the states they give you toilet tissue..they feed you..and so many other things I wont bother to mention..like I said suffering is relative. As far as taking the stuff out the bags..and putting it all together..it had to be cut out..it wasnt just shoved in the bag..Also..I had wanted to take both bags..but scarlett felt that what we had been told was true that the airport security had been taken care of..like i said we had been caught between the island guys robbing the guys back in the states we were just collateral damage..and last but not least..we were not professional criminals..so when your naive sometimes you pay the most in the criminal world. I'm sure an experienced criminal would have seen things we did not.
August 13, 2009 1:53 AM
Scarlet most likely had her fines paid for by her grandmother. It was obvious she was likely going to do it anyways. She probably just had to pay it back. Remember, Jamaica is a very hostile place to homosexual people. Perhaps the US government arranged, paid or loaned the money for her to get out.
Also, about the smugglers going to the airport for help. That's a negative. Law enforcement get promoted based on how many people they can bust, not who they can help. If say, someone dropped some heroin by you, it's best just to ignore it and walk away. Carry it to authorities and you're asking for trouble. They will question you, and some will pin it on you. The likelihood is that the smugglers were just greedy and wanted the money. TK and Scarlet could've walked out of the airport and ditched the bags. I was surprised they even went to the drug dealer again, they could've been killed.
August 15, 2009 11:25 AM
I had known Joe for many years and my least worry was him trying to kill us. Like I said it became obvious that the guys in the island had robbed the guys in the states and we were just caught in the middle. In fact Joe was more worried that I was going to harm him...and he did everything he could to try and make up for what had happened.
August 13, 2009 2:08 AM
I think TK was better at narrating her story than any of the other ones I've seen. I can't put my finger on it but usually I am distracted easily when I watch TV but I was like, glued to my set when I watched this episode. I can see myself falling for something like this when I was in my 20's. I was naive and didn't make the best decisions. I'm glad TK and her girlfriend got out of there. It's interesting to see how other countries' prisons and systems are. I know there is corruption in American prisons too, and also they are dangerous places but they seem a lot better than the ones on these shows!!! Yikes!
August 15, 2009 11:27 AM
Thanks Much for the compliment. The difference between ours and thiers is only that here we are given the basics..there everything you need you have to try and obtain yourself..or have your family obtain it for you
August 13, 2009 2:36 AM
When I was watching this episode I was glued to the tv. Simply because we all at some point in our lives wanted better, and being that it was explained to TK this was going to be easy and you will have a free ride too I can see why. But I'm glad that both of you came back to US soil I know being in a foreign place is scary enough.
August 15, 2009 11:29 AM
I appreciate you understanding that we never meant any harm to anyone. We were just young and dumb and trying to make a better lives for ourselves
August 13, 2009 2:42 AM
Where can I find the show credits? Who played Scarlet? I always love the casting for this show. The actors always "look the part". I also thought the girl that played Lia Mccord was something else, but why don't they ever have a page with the credits?
August 13, 2009 9:26 AM
That was a really interesting episode... Who played Scarlett ?
August 13, 2009 10:59 AM
No disrepsepct to TK but I'm not sure why this was made into a show. Even if they thought marijuana was legal in Jamaica - they obviously knew that it is illegal in the United States - so it would still be a criminal act.
As usual - money talks - so paying a fine gets you out of jail with no further repercussions.
As far as the people they were transporting for - those guys must not have had much sense. Why would they pack the suitcases like that? It's their "investment" - so why would they be so careless?? Also - they were foolish because they sent two lesbians to Jamaica - knowing that homosexuality is illegal in Jamaica. Not to mention the citizens are very hostile towards it.
When they got back to the U.S. those guys didn't try to kill everyone involved in the deal??? It happens for less money involved than that.... Sorry - but this whole story is suspect...
Well - I'm glad TK learned a lesson anyway
August 13, 2009 2:53 PM
Funny how i thought the people were actors. Nope, I actually know TK and her family. Small world and I never knew what happened her. Glad her ordeal is over and she can talk about it today.
August 15, 2009 11:33 PM
TK: when I watched the show, I wondered why you didn't just step out of line, walk a block away from the airport and dump the luggage.
August 16, 2009 11:04 PM
It always seems much simpler when your on the outside looking in...I wish it had been that simple..believe.
August 16, 2009 11:55 PM
Not trying to be rude to TK, but it's likely she believed she could get away with it and get the money. It's not hard to understand the mentality, I guess.
TK, btw, I'm guessing your family is of West Indian, Caribbean descent? I get that impression, judging from the way your parents were portrayed, and where you are from?
August 19, 2009 7:28 PM
Sorry but you are so wrong..my parents are from here there parents were from here and there parents parents were from here..african-americans 100% made in america
August 21, 2009 2:02 AM
I was just saying because on the show, they were nagging you about education. I know how West Indians can be about that.
Did your arrest in Jamaica affect you on your background checks? I always wonder about that, if foreign arrests come up?
August 21, 2009 9:10 PM
no..it didnt affect me here. african american parents want their children to go to school also. I just couldnt see myself going to college. I didnt want to have a big loan to pay off..and I wasnt really sure what i wanted to do as far as a career. If anything i might have problems now that I have done this show. another reason that scarlett changed her mind about the interview.
August 23, 2009 1:04 AM
Did you see Lia from Bangladesh? She was smuggling heroin and got sentenced to prison there. I think she spent four years and Congressman, at the time, Bill Richardson got her out of jail. She ended up getting jobs at NASA and another big corporation in Washington DC! That's unbelievable! She was lucky because she had rich friends and connections.
This happened 20 years ago. I wouldn't care. Most of these smugglers are just dumb kids. I wouldn't think any less of them if I were interviewing them. Even if it was 5 days after they got out.
August 23, 2009 11:08 PM
no..i havent seen Lia from bangladesh...and Im glad for her that this didnt keep her from getting a great job. I dont know if it will be the same for me though. It's nice to know you wouldnt hold a persons' past againt them.but many people do. So all I can do is keep going forward and trying my best..will this show affect me in a negative way??...only time can tell. Thanks for your positive thoughts though
August 16, 2009 7:08 PM
HAVE YOU OR ARE YOU TELLING YOUR STORY TO YOUNG GIRLS/BOYS IN SCHOOLS OR GROUPS
August 16, 2009 11:06 PM
No sir I havent...but I would if asked.
August 16, 2009 7:28 PM
MY BAD I SEE THE ANSWER TO MY QUESTION ON YOUR STORY PAGE SO MY QUESTION NOW: SINCE YOUR STORY AS AIRED WILL YOU THINK ABOUT TALKING TO PEOPLE OR WILL YOU JUST LEAVE IT AS IS?
August 16, 2009 11:20 PM
If I was asked ..I wouldnt have a problem with it..especially if it would help the youth. I never really thought anyone would have interest in what happened to me.
August 16, 2009 9:52 PM
TK i know this a dreadful question, but the guys you had to deal with while in Jamaica appeared to be very ruthless and grimey.. where you or your girlfriend raped at anytime while there ?
August 16, 2009 11:18 PM
No...up until the last night the guys treated us great. I am not a pushover in the least..it may have seemed like I was because I was out of my element..but south bronx..or jamaican ghetto rape victim is not something that would happen to me..nor would I allow it to happen to my girl.
August 16, 2009 11:58 PM
geedy510, don't be presumptuous.
August 17, 2009 3:19 AM
How is geedy510 being presumptuous? That's a very valid question. and honestly, even if they were raped....do you honestly think that they would admit it? highly doubt it..... C'mon now.
August 19, 2009 7:34 PM
Balian..I see you are just a very negative person..I have been open and honest about everything else..I have no reason to lie about that. first of all when I was 20..I was 185 pounds of muscle..i bench pressed 200lbs..i did 50 push-ups a day and was a purple belt in karate. I grew up in a very tough area and was always open about who I was..meaning I was never in the closet..my girlfriends were always very pretty and I got into fights with men..without hesitation..as you could see I didnt have any scars on my face..so I never lost a fight I was in. Rape..sir was never an issue...getting back home was the issue. People like you are the reason scarlett refused to do the interview.
August 16, 2009 11:21 PM
are you in touch with Scarlet now?
August 16, 2009 11:30 PM
We spoke a couple of weeks before the taping of the show..she decided it was just too painful for her to bring up all the bad memories..we spent some time together and we still care for one another..but we have both grown and changed so much
September 16, 2009 1:05 PM
TK: Have you thought about going into teaching? I think you would be great. It seems like you gained a lot of wisdom that young people could benefit from--esp. African American youth who need teachers who understand where they're coming from. It's a tough job but then again you survived a Jamaican jail.
Thanks for sharing your story and good luck to you!
October 3, 2009 11:18 PM
Hi, This message is for k.t
I just wanted to thank you for sharing your story. I have seen the show a few times and I never felt very many people take responsiblity for what they had done. You did. It is not about how much time you spend in jail, its about how it effected and changed your life. Everyone makes mistakes and it was nice to see you learn from yours. You seem like good hearted person. I wish you well in your life. I hope that you can use the pain and hurt you felt to redirect and make possitive changes in your life and in the lives of others.
god bless you in all your endeavors.
D. mixed_won@yahoo.com
October 4, 2009 5:06 PM
TK - I just watched the show for the first time yesterday. It is a big risk to go on National Television with the details of what you went through. Although you had obviously made some pretty bad choices, it is admirable that you admit to them, learn from them, and took the risk to share it with others.You were very good at narrating it too. My young son was watching the show with me, and we were engaged with your story. It's not often that kids actually get to learn something good from Television nowadays. It seems that through the mistake you made, the punishment you experienced, and then now the truthful perspective you have chosen to take to use that experience as a means to share and teach others, you are exonerated, free. On behalf of those of us that learned from your story, thank you, I wish you a good future, and that the TRUTH continues to set you free.
October 5, 2009 12:14 PM
I just want to say to TK that your narration of the story was great. You told the story with passion and honesty. Girrl you told the story so well, I believe it would make a decent movie. Good luck to you in all your endeavors.
November 19, 2009 12:52 PM
Hi TK sorry to see eveything you went through. I have just seen the programme last night for the first time as it was only aired in England last night.
If it makes you feel any better you got off very lightly compared to what others have been through. I watch the programme all the time (its actually called 'Banged up Abroad here in England) and the smugglers are usually locked up between 3-6 years.
I was just wondering a couple of things however:
1) Why didn't you just go up to an airport employee (as soon as you entered the airport) with the bag explaining that you were forced to do this? Surely they would have had all vehicle details on airport CCTV? At this point your only crime was carrying drugs, not attempting to smuggle.
2) You say the Jamicans conned the Americans but i dont understand this? They parted with their drugs, so surely they kept to their part of the deal?
3) Was it a all-female jail? You say you had to pay for the food, what food did you get for free and what did you get if you paid the guards? How did you get money to pay for the food?
4) I only live 20 minutes from Sheffield, England where your friend is from. How is that girl doing now? What was she in for? Must be really hard for her in there.
Good Luck with anything you do in the future.
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