Just when you think you have seen everything, a story like this comes along.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit against a brokerage firm, alleging that it stole $120 million from clients in a series of fraudulent schemes.  The money would be diverted into the pockets of some of the principals of the firm to buy luxury cars and golf and country club memberships.  But what makes the story unique from the usual Bernie Madoff rip-off is that the brokerage firm reportedly used the ill-gotten money to help operate a “sexually themed” cruise called YOLO Cruises ("You Only Live Once").   

The Times Union newspaper reports that the Albany, New York firm of McGinn, Smith & Company engaged in an elaborate scheme where investors were told only that they were investing into a business which chartered ships and then sold cabins to different organizations. 

The SEC lawsuit alleges that investors were not told that the business involved YOLO Cruises which sold sexually explicit cruises which involved "legally and morally questionable activities," including hiring "strippers and go-go dancers" to entertain passengers.

The lawsuit further alleges that one of the principals of the brokerage firm, Timothy McGinn, was "romantically involved" with an unnamed woman who ran YOLO Cruises. Last month, USA TODAY’s Gene Sloan covered the story of YOLO "swinger cruises" in an article "Swingers Cruise Founder: It’s Not All About Sex At Sea."

The YOLO website advertises a swingers’ cruise aboard Carnival’s Imagination on October 29, 2010, which includes a  "Carnal Cravings Halloween Ball" followed by a "Naked and Recuperating At Sea Day." 

Earlier this year, Carnival decided to abandon the popular "Cougar Cruises," which were quickly picked up by Royal Caribbean which dominates the "sexually charged" Atlantis gay parties and swinger cruises.  TheSwingerCruise.com lists two upcoming swinger cruises on Royal Caribbean Radiance of the Seas and another on its subsidiary Azamara’s Journey cruise ship. 

Today, I’m sure that Carnival is trying to figure out how to distance itself from this mess.

 

If you liked this article, don’t miss reading:  Marketing "Sex at Sea" on Cruise Ships

 

Credits:

Story             Times Union newspaper

Photograph            YOLO Cruises