NASSAU, Bahamas — A Sand Springs mother was fined $8,000 after a loaded handgun was discovered in her purse while she was on a Royal Caribbean cruise in the Bahamas.
Mary Robinson, 69, was found with a black Kel-Tec .380 pistol and four rounds of ammunition aboard the Liberty of the Seas when it docked at Prince George Wharf in Nassau on Dec. 2, authorities said. Robinson was arrested shortly after the discovery and spent about five days in Nassau’s Fox Hill Prison, which has been criticized for overcrowding and poor conditions.
Robinson pleaded guilty to possession charges on Dec. 4 before Magistrate Lennox Coleby. She apologized in court, saying she had forgotten the firearm was in her purse, noting that Oklahoma allows open carry. She was ordered to pay the $8,000 fine or face up to 24 months in prison.
Her attorney, Bjorn Ferguson, told USA TODAY that entering the Bahamas with a firearm is “problematic” and that possession charges are taken very seriously.
Robinson’s granddaughter, Graci Exendine, set up a GoFundMe to cover the fine and related costs. The campaign raised more than $12,000 in just nine days. Exendine said her grandmother had gone on the cruise to celebrate her adopted son Johnny’s 12th birthday and normally leaves any firearms in her car, as they are prohibited on cruise ships.
According to a neighbor, Robinson has been home and safe for a week now.
Royal Caribbean prohibits passengers from bringing firearms, knives, ammunition, and other weapons on board. How Robinson’s handgun passed through security at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, remains unknown.