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Today, our office manager, Betsy Benitez, who has been an integral part of this firm since 2001, suggested that we begin to use Chat GPT. I had never used this technology before and was a bit skeptical about integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into our law practice. So I typed CruiseLawNews into chatGPT and asked the technology to tell me about this law blog. It responded:

“Cruise Law News is a prominent blog that provides information and updates on legal matters related to the cruise industry. Created by maritime attorney Jim Walker, the blog covers a range of topics including passenger rights, shipboard accidents, and legal issues involving cruise lines.

History and Background

  1. Founder: Jim Walker, a well-known maritime attorney with extensive experience in maritime law, established Cruise Law News. His practice focuses on representing clients in cases involving cruise ship injuries, maritime personal injury, and related legal issues.
  2. Purpose: The blog serves as a resource for both cruise passengers and industry professionals, offering insights into legal developments, safety issues, and news related to cruise ships. It aims to keep the public informed about the legal aspects of cruising and to advocate for passengers’ rights.
  3. Content: The blog features articles on a wide range of topics, including:
    • Accidents and Injuries: Reports on incidents involving cruise ship passengers or crew, including accidents, falls, and illnesses.
    • Legal Cases: Updates on ongoing and recent lawsuits involving cruise lines, highlighting significant legal battles and outcomes.
    • Safety and Regulations: Information on safety standards, changes in regulations, and tips for passengers to protect themselves.
    • Passenger Rights: Guidance on what passengers can do if they encounter problems or disputes with cruise lines.
  4. Impact: Over the years, Cruise Law News has become a significant source of information for those seeking to understand the legal landscape of the cruise industry. It has helped raise awareness about issues that may not receive widespread media coverage and has provided a platform for passengers to voice their concerns.
  5. Developments: The blog has evolved to cover emerging issues in the cruise industry, including environmental concerns, health crises, and changes in maritime law. Its coverage adapts to new trends and challenges within the industry.

Overall, Cruise Law News plays a crucial role in the intersection of maritime law and the cruise industry, offering valuable information and advocacy for consumers and legal professionals alike.”

The summary seems pretty accurate to me.

I have not yet prepared an article using chatGPI or other AI products. Every word here, and the other 3,750 articles which I’ve written in the last 15 years, are typed by me personally (which may explain why there are often typo’s in this blog). If I begin to use AI to write blog articles, which at this point I’m hesitant point to do, I’ll let everyone know in advance.

Have a question or comment? Please leave one below or join the discussion on our Facebook page.

Image credit: ChatGPT – iSend; photos of Jim Walker and Carnival Liberty cruise ship – Jim Walker; Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas – Expedia.com via SFGate.

The second quarter 2024 cruise ship crime data mandated by the Cruise Vessel Safety Security and Safety Act (CVSSA) released this morning shows that Carnival Cruise Lines again leads the cruise industry with the most sexual assaults and rapes in the cruise industry, both in real numbers and on a per capita basis.

Today the Department of Transportation listed nine (9) sexual assaults and rapes on Carnival cruise ships this last quarter (April 1 to June 30). There were sixteen (16) other sexual assaults and rapes on all other cruise ships with Royal Caribbean (5), NCL (3), Disney (3), Princess (2) and Celebrity, Linblad and MSC experiencing one (1) each.

Carnival has 38 percent of the sexual assaults and rapes in the cruise industry per the CVSSA data.

The first quarter 2024 (January 1 – March 31) DOT cruise crime data also revealed that Carnival Cruise Line is the cruise brand with the most sexual violence at sea. Carnival Cruise Line reported that there were nine (9) instances of sexual assault / rape on its twenty-seven ships, with Royal Caribbean (with the same number of ships but a higher number of passengers) having eight (8) such crimes.

Last year Carnival Cruise Line had a total of forty-five (45) sexual assaults / rapes. Considering it has around 115,000 passengers and crew members onboard its fleet on an average day, this turns out to be a higher per capita sexual assault rate than around 20 states in the U.S. Royal Caribbean, on the other hand, has fewer sexual crimes but more passengers (closer to 150,000 passengers and crew members on the same number of ships at any given time).

Carnival also leads the cruise industry in the most number of physical assaults with serious personal injuries.

The purpose of the public disclosure of mandatory reporting of sexual assaults, rapes, and physical assaults with serious bodily injuries on cruise ships is to educate and warn the traveling public of dangers on cruise ships. By all accounts, Carnival remains the most dangerous place to take your family on a vacation cruise.

Have a comment or question? Please leave one below or join the discussion on our facebook page.

 Carnival Liberty leaving Miami – Jim Walker; Carnival Magic in Norfolk – Jim Walker

Update: In response to an inquiry on our Facebook, “why is this happening?,” I responded:

In my view, because there’s way too much alcohol sold and served on Carnival’s so called “fun ships,” creating a party-boat mentality, plus a history of concealing crimes and protecting the corporate image at the expense of safety of women & children . . . this has been going on for too long! https://www.miaminewtimes.com/…/carnival-try-criminal…

Early this morning, a passenger reportedly went overboard from a cruise ship sailing in the Adriatic Sea, according to several passengers who contacted us today. The Explorer of the Seas was sailing on a seven day Greece-Croatia cruise when what is described as a young man went overboard around 4:30 to 5:00 a.m. (Another passenger stated on Twitter that the announcement of the overboard was around 3:40 a.m.) There is no description of how the passenger went overboard or from what location. There reportedly was a public announcement on the ship of the incident.

AIS data shows the cruise ship changing direction several times as the Royal Caribbean ship began initiating search and rescue efforts.

At least one passenger is tweeting information about this incident:


A newspaper in Croatia is reporting that the man went overboard around 5:30 a.m. this morning.

On August 3rd, the Explorer of the Seas departed from Ravenna, Italy and sailed to Dubrovnik, Croatia, and then to Piraeus-Athens, Greece, Santorini, Greece, and was heading to Zadar, Croatia today before returning to Ravenna.

The Explorer of the Seas is not equipped with a man overboard (MOB) system with state of the art sensors with motion detection / infrared / radar systems, which would have automatically sent a signal to the bridge of the ship and then tracked the overboard person in the water.

This is at least the 414th person to go overboard from a cruise ship or large ferry in the last 25 years according to leading cruise expert Dr. Ross Klein who keeps track of such events and shares the data online.

It appears that the ship is still conducting search and rescue efforts at this time.

We will update this article as more information becomes available.

If you have a comment or question, please leave one below, or join the conversation on our Facebook page.

Image credit: Explorer of the Seas (in Greece) Kefalonitis94 – CC0 commons / wikimedia; AIS data – cruisemapper.

Update:

As usual, Royal Caribbean has not released an official statement of the incident, nor disclosed the identity, age or nationality of the overboard guest.

One newspaper in Croatia, Slobodna Dalmacija, announced that the missing guest is a “young citizen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

U.S. Homeland Security arrested two crew members on cruise ships operated by Carnival Cruise Line when they were in New Orleans two weeks ago. According to a newspaper in News Orleans, Homeland Security arrested Abdhul Rouvoof Shaik of India and Reza Heta Pratama of Indonesia for possession and transportation of child pornography after they disembarked two different Carnival Cruise Line ships, Carnival Liberty (above right) and Carnival Valor (above left), in New Orleans. 

The arrests were first reported by the Times Picayune and then picked up by USA TODAY. Neither publication provided any information which would place the story in the context of the larger problem of child pornography in the cruise industry.

Unlike other cases, I have not found arrest photographs and/or mug shots of these Carnival crew members.

These arrests bring the total number of crew members apprehended on cruise ships for child pornography to the unprecedented number of fifteen (15) cruise ship employees in just the first six (6) months of this year.

So far, crew members from five companies have been arrested on child pornography charges: Carnival – 6 (or 7); Royal Caribbean – 3; Disney – 3; Celebrity – 1; and Holland America Line – 1. The employer of one crew member, Ferry Maryanto, who was arrested last month, was not identified. He may have been employed by Carnival Cruise Line on either the Carnival Horizon or the Carnival Magic. He was arrested at the port of Miami on a day when two cruise ships operated by Carnival, one ship by Virgin Voyages and one ship by Norwegian Cruise Line were in port.

The last six or seven crew members arrested on child pornography charges were all employed by Carnival Cruise Line. Two of four Carnival crew members arrested in early June at the port of Miami worked on the Carnival Conquest. Iputuagus Karnawan, a/k/a Putu Karnawan (age 28)(from Indonesia), reportedly worked in the galley as a cook on the Carnival Conquest. Imadewisma Dana (also age 28 and from Indonesia), also reportedly worked as a cook on the Carnival Conquest.

Igedeboy Mardika (photo below right), a 28-year-old Indonesian national, and Sreerag Vazhayil (photo below left) , a 32-year-old Indian national, were also arrested for child pornography and were also accused of possessing bestiality videos on the Carnival Cruise Line ship where they worked (either the Carnival Horizon or Carnival Celebration).

Crackdown On Child Pornography By U.S. and Florida Law Enforcement in South Florida

Considering the high number of crew members who have been arrested on cruise ships in South Florida in the last six months, there appears to be an effort by both state and federal law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute people who possess and transport child pornography (and bestiality videos) on cruise ships. It is likely that once law enforcement seizes a crew member’s iPhone and/or computer, they obtain evidence such as social media sites and internet transmissions which share child pornography and/or bestiality images implicating a wide number of ship employees. Some of these crew members appear to trade and/or exchange images with other ship employees.

The arrest affidavit in the pending criminal case no. 2:24-mj-00105-DM filed in federal court for the Eastern District of Louisiana states that crew member Shaik was a member of a group of men in a WhatsApp group who would share images of “children having sex.” He would chat with his friend from Indonesia and send and receive “porn videos” involving children. The Indonesian friend was referred to in the arrest affidavit as a “co-conspirator.” Shaik waived his Miranda rights against self-incrimination and admitted to the arresting special agent on July 14th that he realized that the video included children and that child pornography was illegal.

It appears that crew member Pratama was directly implicated by Shaik and/or by transmissions on Shaik’s cell rhone. Homeland Security arrested Pratama a few days later, on July 18th.

Carnival allegedly terminated Pratama from his job and dismissed him from the ship following earlier sexual harassment complaints of an unspecified nature from his co-employees, as mentioned in an arrest affidavit by a Homeland Security Investigations special agent. Pratama also reportedly waived his Miranda rights and admitted to obtaining the child pornography images material from a Telegram group.

It seems clear to me the federal and state law enforcement authorities are working with agencies which use state-of-the-art surveillance software where experts monitor child pornography and file-sharing sites to develop a massive international database to catch those who possess and share child abuse images. Read: Inside the Surveillance Software Tracking Child Porn Offenders Across the Globe

It is unprecedented that law enforcement in any particular port would arrest as many as a dozen crew members for child pornography. Before this year, only ports outside of the United States, such as Canada, would arrest more than a just a few cruise ship employees for child pronography in any given year. See for example, Nabbed at Pier 21 – Another Crew Member Busted with Child Porn in Halifax, HAL Cruise Ship Musician Jailed for Child Pornography, Is Child Pornography Widespread on Cruise Ships?, Another Cruise Ship Employee Busted with Child Porn – This Time HAL Veendam, Another Carnival Crew Member Busted for Child Porn, and Costa Crew Member Caught With Child Pornography.

There is no question that there has been a change in the policy of law enforcement to increase scrutinizing of cruise ships as a source for child pornography.

You can read more about the problem of pornography on cruise ships here: Epidemic of Child Pornography on Cruise Ships Continues As Two More Crew Members Are Arrested.

Have a comment or question? Please leave one below or join the conversation on our Facebook page.

Image credit: Carnival Valor – Mason Piscitelli – CC BY-SA 4.0 commons / wikimedia; Carnival Liberty – Yankeesman312 CC BY-SA 4.0 commons / wikimedia; Stop Abuse Graphic – Stop Child Abuse Campaign.

A video of a brawl on the Carnival Paradise as the cruise ship was sailing back to Tampa last month has been circulating for the last two days. Newsweek covered the melee in an article titled “Cruise Ship Fight Video Shows Chairs Being Thrown Amid Chaos.” The magazine states the “6-and-a-half-minute video shows chairs being thrown across a dining room and a group of several women entangled in a fight, throwing punches, pulling hair and dragging one another to the ground.” A security guard appears at the scene nearly a minute into the fight. A cruise passenger identified as @Rizzarioman123, who appears from time to time in the video with his eyes seemingly bloodshot, holding a drink in his hand looking for some late night pizza, is heard cursing and encouraging the brawlers as he narrates, blow-by-blow, the fraucus posted on TicTok.

Cruise Radio covered the ruckus and included a statement from Carnival which cited its grandiose but illusory code of conduct which states, in part: “Our Carnival Values underscore that everyone should feel welcome and included, and that everyone on board demonstrate care and respect towards others.” 

Carnival Cruise Line has essentially cornered the market, so to speak, on shipboard violence in its nightclubs and pool bars over the years. Not surprisingly, Carnival has the most physical assaults “leading to serious bodily injury” as per the language of federal law with a total of a least fourteen (14) physical assaults with serious bodily injury reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in 2023. (In comparison, there are only eight (8) physical assaults with serious injury on all other cruise lines combined making the fleet of Carnival cruise ships by far the most violent cruise ships sailing on the high seas).

In the past, Carnival Cruise Line has characterized brawls like this as “limited, isolated and unprecedented.” Anyone who follows the cruise industry knows that these types of fights which occur on Carnival ships are hardly rare. But in this brawl, the Carnival PR team simply states that those implicated in the violence will be banned from cruising with Carnival again. With Carnival enjoying unprecedented sales and its ships sailing full, this is not much of a deterrence of future violence.

There literally are several dozens of videos on YouTube of fights which have erupted on cruise ships over the years. The vast majority of these brawls occur on Carnival ships.

There are reasons for this problem, in my opinion:

The “wider audience:” Cruising is now more popular than ever. The cruise line’s trade organization, Cruise Line International Association (CLIA), says that over 30 million passengers will take a cruise this year.  Cheaper fares have attracted what Carnival Corporation’s former chairmen Micky Arison characterizes as the “wider audience.” This audience is generally a younger and harder partying crowd. Nearly fifteen years ago in an article titled Cruise Ship Brawls – A Problem that Will Get Bigger with Bigger Ships, I wrote about former CEO Arison discussing potential issues associated with cheap cruise tickets and a more diverse group of passengers.

Arison said: “cruise ships are a microcosm of any city or any location and stuff happens . . . The negatives of discounting might be less commission for agents and less revenue for us but the positive is it opens up the product to a wider audience.” I mentioned that the “wider audience” will undoubtedly include a younger crowd from a different demographic, including what I call the hard partying “Bud Light – tank top” crowd. Carnival has failed to hire additional security to police this more raucous crowd.

Too much alcohol on increasingly gigantic ships: Cruise lines aren’t profitable based solely on their cruise fares. Of all “onboard purchases,” including casino sales, shore excursions, specialty restaurants and gift shops, alcohol sales are the key to keeping the tax-free foreign flagged cruise ships profitable.  Pushing alcohol sales are a key part of Carnival’s so-called “fun ships.” Carnival collects literally hundreds of millions of tax-free dollars a year selling booze on the Carnival Cruise Line fleet. Bartenders, who make a earning solely on gratuities and tips, are often prone to over-serve guests.

Ill trained and and insufficient number of security guards: A common complaint we hear from passengers is that ship security does not intervene at an early stage to stop potentially violent situations from escalating and getting out of hand. Carnival often responds to brawls by praising its supposedly “highly trained security staff.” But images of its security personnel and ship officers kicking and beating passengers (and trying to stop passengers from filming the out of control violence) speaks volumes about Carnival’s shipboard security and the cruise line’s so-called “zero tolerance” of such violence. In many videos, Carnival security personnel are often seen observing the fights or trying to stop people from taking videos of the melees.

Years ago, I asked how Carnival will handle the “wider audience” flocking onto its larger cruise ships. If cruise ships are like cities and “stuff happens,” as Carnival’s Arison rightfully suggests, what steps are cruise lines taking to protect U.S. families? I asked then and will ask now whether Carnival and other cruise lines will ever hire a full complement of well trained and experienced security guards? Or will they continue to try and save money with only a few inexperienced “guards” trying to protect their guests from the inevitable violence when thousands of people squeeze into the huge ships and far too much booze is added to the mess?

The answer to these questions is contained in this video and the numerous other Carnival brawl videos online.

Have a comment or question? Please leave one below or join the discussion on our Facebook page.

July 2, 2024 Update:

TicTok removed the video but @rizzarioman123 posted it on YouTube:

July 3, 2024 Update:

Image credit: Carnival brawl – TicTok by @rizzarioman123, I Meme Therefore I Am (ImMeme0); Carnival Paradise – Crew Center CC By 4.0 commons / wikimedia.

A fire occured this afternoon on the Icon of the Seas, while the Royal Caribbean cruise ship was docked in Costa Maya, Mexico.

As predicted, the cruise line promptly released the usual talking points that: (1) the fire was “small,” (2) caused “brief” power loss, and (3) was “quickly extinguished.” Fortunately, no one has stated that there were any injuries to passengers or crew members.

The popular Cruise Radio reports that “power failed throughout the ship, impacting elevators, air conditioning, service stations, and cabins.”

A Royal Caribbean spokesperson spoke by telephone to Cruise Radio and covered all of the usual PR bases, stating that “a small fire occurred on the Icon of the Seas on Tuesday. The fire was quickly extinguished, and the ship also experienced a brief loss of power.”

A PR announcement was also made on the cruise ship which stated, in part: “There has been an incident on Icon of the Seas on the lower decks, non-technical spaces. Our highly trained crew members are dealing with the situation at hand . . .”

It is curious that the “Only In Dade” site reports, “according to one of the passengers, a loud explosion occurred . . . ” I wonder exactly what that was about?

This is the second power loss of the Icon of the Seas with the first occuring on May 19th, according to Cruise Hive and Cruise Radio.

If you are on the Icon of the Seas, as a guest or crew member, and have details about the fire or images of the fire team responding to the incident, please contact us.

If you have any comments or questions, please join the discussion on our Facebook page.

June 26, 2024 Update: Crew Center reports that according to an unnamed source, the fire was “in the engine room.” Also, “shortly after the initial incident, a second emergency was announced with an Alpha code for a medical emergency at the aft gangway. Some passengers aboard the Icon of the Seas reported that the first emergency calls were for the forward engine rooms . . . ” 

Most “coverage’ by the usual newspapers contain hyperbolic, over-the-top nothing-to see-here cheerleading, with virtually no facts, like this: “There were ‘no injuries‘ and the ‘small fire‘ – which was ‘isolated to a crew area‘ – was ‘quickly extinguished.’ The ship’s backup power was ‘activated immediately,’ and the main power systems were restored.”  https://www.usatoday.com/…/royal-caribbean…/74214662007/

Image credit: Icon of the Seas – Chakie2 CC BY-SA 4.0 commons / wikimedia; fire team on cruise ship descending stairs – Only In Dade.

Content Warning: This article contains references to child sexual abuse, animal abuse and sexual assault of minors.

Local10 News in Miami reports that a 35-year-old crew member appeared in federal court yesterday after federal agents found child sexual abuse material and bestiality videos on his phone after he disembarked at PortMiami on Sunday.

According to the local news station, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents searched the cellphone of Ferry Maryanto, on Sunday afternoon, which revealed “multiple videos/photographs” depicting child sexual abuse material. The station did not identify his home country, although some people tell me that “Maryanto” is a common name in Indonesia.

The videos on the ship employee’s cell phone showed “boys and girls being raped or otherwise sexually abused by men or women.” Miami-Dade Police, who arrested the crew member, said the videos depicted victims “between the ages of 3 and 10 years old being sexually abused.”

Maryanto was also found to be in possession of videos that depicted videos of bestiality, including “multiple videos of women engaging in sexual activity with a horse, pig and dog.”

The local news station reports that Maryanto “made a confession to detectives when being interviewed.”

Maryanto faces 10 counts of possession of child pornography and three counts of sexual conduct with animals. He was being held (on an immigration hold) at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on behalf of the U.S. Marshals Service as of Monday. His bond was set at $2,500 per count.

The arrest report did not disclose the name of Maryanta’s cruise ship employer or the ship where he worked. The only cruise ships in port in Miami last Sunday were the Valiant Lady, Norwegian Breakaway and two Carnival ships, the Carnival Horizon and the Carnival Magic.

This latest arrest brings the total number of crew members arrested to thirteen! So far, crew members from five companies have been arrested on child pornography charges: Carnival – 4; Royal Caribbean – 3; Disney – 3; Celebrity – 1; and Holland America Line – 1.

The last four crew members arrested were all employed by Carnival Cruise Line. Two of the four Carnival crew members, who were arrested two weeks ago, Iputuagus Karnawan, a/k/a Putu Karnawan (age 28)(from Indonesia), reportedly worked in the galley as a cook on the Carnival Conquest. Imadewisma Dana (also age 28 and from Indonesia), also reportedly worked a cook on the Carnival Conquest.

Imadewisma Dana (left), Iputuagus Karnawan (upper right), Carnival Conquest.

The other two Carnival crew members, who were arrested last week on charges of possessing child pornography, Igedeboy Mardika (photo below right), a 28-year-old Indonesian national, and Sreerag Vazhayil (photo below left) , a 32-year-old Indian national, were also accused of possessing bestiality videos on the Carnival Cruise Line ship where they worked (either the Carnival Horizon or Carnival Celebration).

Epidemic of Child Pornography on Cruise Ships Continues As Two More Crew Members Are Arrested

Vazhayil possessed a “video of a man having sex with a horse;” Mardika “had three videos of women having sex with a horse, a dog and a pig,” according to Miami-Dade Police. These bestiality allegations against Carnival crew member Mardika are exactly the same as the charges against crew member Ferry Maryanto who was arrested two days ago. The question naturally arises – did these two crew members work on the same ship? Did they exchange or trade the same illegal images?

Where Did This Latest Crew Members Work?

Many times. the arrest records don’t identify the name of the cruise line employer or the cruise ship where the crew member lived and worked. Many tens of thousands of crew members read this blog and several ship employees have identified the cruise lines which hired and employed some of the crew members who have been arrested in the past on child pornography charges. (We of course protect their anonymity). We will be asking for assistance once again in learning the identity of the cruise line involved in tis latest crime.

Crackdown On Child Pornography By U.S. and Florida Law Enforcement in South Florida

Considering the high number of crew members who have been arrested on cruise ships in South Florida in the last five months, there appears to be an effort by both state and federal law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute people who possess and transport child pornography (and bestiality videos) on cruise ships. It is likely that once law enforcement seizes a crew member’s iPhone and/or computer, they obtain evidence such as social media sites and internet transmissions which share child pornography and/or bestiality images implicating a wide number of ship employees. Some of these crew members work on the same cruise ship and may trade and/or exchange images.

It also seems clear to me that federal and state law enforcement authorities are working with agencies which use state-of-the-art surveillance software where experts monitor child pornography and file-sharing sites to develop a massive international database to catch those who possess and share child abuse images. Read: Inside the Surveillance Software Tracking Child Porn Offenders Across the Globe

Are Cruise Employers Doing Anything to Address the Illegal Conduct?

There remains the fundamental issue whether cruise employers are taking any steps to prohibit child pornography on their ships.

First of all, it is clear in reviewing the arrest reports and/or probable cause affidavits that the cruise lines do not monitor the computers or cell phone of their ship employees. We have never read, for example, that a cruise line has ever informed law enforcement that a ship employee has been caught with child pornography.

I have asked crew members to explain whether the cruise lines have rules and regulations (in a company handbook or in the “Master’s Rules”) regarding the issue of child pornography (i.e., it is against the cruise line’s policies and will lead to termination, plus an explanation why it’s illegal, why it’s unlawful, and the serious risks which ship employees face (arrest, criminal prosecution and fines, potential jail sentences and being classified as a sexual criminal).

So far, two crew members have explained the policy of Disney Cruise Line. One Disney crew member told me the following:

“In response to your question, since the arrests Disney has done town hall meeting (mandatory crew assembly) where top management from shore side have talked about the arrests and have gone over that it is illegal and that they will report to all levels of law enforcement if they catch any illegal activity on the DCL internet, they also talked about how other activities (ie. sexual harassment on anyone not just minors) and threats and assaults will all be handed over to law enforcement). All crew who come back for another contract will hear the same message each sign on and in HR training in the first week it is talked about how it is automatic termination if caught going anywhere by yourself (with a minor you must always have 2 crew members). During training and once a year crew members get a class on avoiding sexual harassment and abuse which goes over disciplinary actions. “

I get the impression that Carnival and Royal Caribbean, on the other hand, don’t devote any time, effort or energy in educating and training its crew members regarding this serious problem. So far, no employees of Carnival or Royal Caribbean have offered any explanation whether they receive training or instruction, notwithstanding the fact that numerous ship employees from both companies have been arrested for possessing child abuse images of very young children.

Where Will This End?

Will cruise lines (other than Disney) take this problem seriously and train their crew members?

My bet is that child protection agencies know the identity of additional crew members on cruise ships calling on South Florida who have downloaded or purchased illegal images. These agencies are probably coordinating with law enforcement to apprehend them when the ships where they work return to U.S. ports.

Stay tuned.

Have a comment or question? Please leave one below or join the discussion on our Facebook page.

Interested in this issue? Read: Cruise Ship Employee Arrested at PortMiami on Multiple Counts Involving Child Porngraphy

Image credit: Ferry Maryanto – Mugshot Zone and Local10 News.

A crew member reportedly went overboard from the MSC Musica sailing from Italy last Monday evening, according to the popular Cruise Radio fan page which asserts that the unidentified man “jumped.” The MSC ship was sailing in the Mediterranean Sea after departing from the port of Civitavecchia and heading to Genoa.

Cruise Radio does not refer to any eye-witness accounts, surveillance video or anyone at MSC as a source for the proposition that the MSC employee “jumped.” There is no indication exactly when the crew member went overboard or the time it took to initiate a search.

Two days after the crew member went overboard, Cruise Radio obtained a quote from MSC Cruises saying that it allegedly “responded promptly” to the incident and its “man overboard procedure” was allegedly “immediately initiated.” MSC did not release any details regarding the overboard incident, including a description of how its employee went overboard, when it occurred, or when the cruise ship initiated its unspecified “man overboard procedure” and began its search and rescue efforts.

Cruise Radio posted an image of the Automatic Information System (AIS) data showing the path of MSC Musica when it initiated the search for its overboard employee.

The AIS image shows the MSC Musica essentially taking two u-turns and then proceeding on toward Genoa. The ship obviously did not make a lengthy or exhaustive search for the missing employee.

MSC told Cruise Radio on Wednesday that “in cooperation with the local authorities, a search and rescue operation was launched with the aid of a rescue helicopter and multiple patrol boats. At this present time, the search is still ongoing.”

It would be highly unusual if the local Italian coast guard was still conducting search efforts some 36 hours after the MSC employee went into the water, as MSC claims and as Cruise Radio reports.

Although there is no source cited for the claim that the crew member jumped, it is in fact the most likely explanation when a ship employee goes overboard. Unlike cruise passengers who typically go overboard after consuming excessive alcohol, most crew members who become missing from cruise ships decide to end their lives due to long hours, hard work, lengthy contracts away from loved ones and family members, and the absence of shipboard psychological help.

This is the 8th person overboard from a MSC cruise ship in less than the last seven months. In our view, MSC never “immediately” initiated search and rescue procedures or responded “promptly” to an overboard crew member or guest in the last eight cases.

Last week, a cruise passenger went overboard from the MSC Euribia while the cruise ship was sailing near Norway. The MSC ship initiated search efforts after a delay of approximately fifteen minutes. This is about the fastest response by MSC we have seen to a person going overboard from a MSC ship.

On March 15, 2024, a twenty-three (23) year-old passenger from Scotland, named Liam Brody Wilkie Jones, went overboard from the MSC Euribia. His family members on Facebook commented that they were frustrated by the lack of communications by the cruise line and the fact that there was no timely announcement on the ship that a person went overboard. There reportedly is absolutely no indication that the ship made any effort to promptly conduct a search and rescue. The MSC cruise ship reportedly did not alter speed or direction, deploy rescue craft, or use spotlights. The fact that it made no man overboard announcement is consistent with the lack of effort to conduct a search.

On February 4, 2024, a passenger fell off the MSC Bellissima cruise ship traveling from Taiwan to Okinawa. According to the Taiwan News, the passenger was located, pulled from the water and then rushed to a hospital, where he was reported to be in good condition following medical treatment.

On December 30, 2023, a passenger went overboard from the MSC Preziosa after the MSC cruise ship left the port of Santos heading to New Year’s Eve festivities in Rio de Janeiro.

A passenger went overboard from the MSC Armonia during a transatlantic cruise to Brazil on December 15, 2023. It does not appear that the MSC ship made any effort to conduct a search for the man in the water. AIS tracking services show that the MSC Armonia made no deviation of its course as the ship headed across the Atlantic ocean.

A crew member went overboard from the MSC Seascape in waters off of Puerto Rico on November 15, 2023. MSC delayed several hours in searching for its overboard crew member and then delayed notifying the family of the missing crew member.

There is no indication that the MSC Musica has a state-of-the-art man overboard (MOB) system which would automatically detect, via motion detection, radar and infra-red technology, when someone goes over the rails and can track the person in the water even at night. Without such a system, it is exceedingly difficult to search for a person in the water, especially at night.

In 2017, we reported that MSC Cruises announced that it had installed a state-of-the-art man overboard system on the MSC Meraviglia and was planning to deploy similar systems across its fleet of cruise ships.

MSC Cruises indicated that it developed an “intelligent video capturing and analysis system” in collaboration with “security technology experts, Bosch and Hewlett Packard Enterprise.” The Swiss-based cruise line announced that it has tested the new man overboard system on the company’s newest ship which debuted in June (2017).  MSC reported that “through over 25,000 hours of video analysis, extensive software testing and continuous algorithmic updates, the system has now reached a confirmed accuracy level of 97%.”

The MOB data and images are analyzed by two separate and independent image processing systems which significantly lower false alerts. “Once the alarm is activated in case of an overboard, an acoustic signal and light will notify the ship’s security officer, in a central security room, who can immediately retrieve and review the images and data and immediately notify the bridge to begin rescue efforts,” according to  Seatrade Cruise News. MSC Cruises announced MSC Meraviglia is “fitted with an integrated video surveillance system to optimize security monitoring on board the ship and which will allow, among other features, for the speediest intervention in the unlikely event a person or object falls overboard.”

In July 2019, a cruise guest in her 40’s went overboard from the MSC Meraviglia but was promptly rescued after the auto MOB alerted the crew that she went overboard.

Unfortunately, it does not appear that any other MSC ships have been equipped with the life saving MOB system. Twenty-seven (27) people have gone overboard from MSC cruise ships since 2006.

This is the 412th person who has gone overboard since 2000, according to Dr. Ross Klein who maintains the definitive list of cruise ship overboards.

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Image credit: MSC Musica – Bahnfrend – CC BY-SA 3.0 commons / wikimedia; MSC Musica AIS data – Cruise Radio.

Content Warning: This article contains references to child sexual abuse, animal abuse and sexual assault of minors.

Two crew members were arrested last Sunday at PortMiami for possession of child pornography, bringing the total number of crew members arrested in South Florida in just the last five months to twelve. Miami-Dade police arrested the cruise ship employees last weekend “after cabin searches turned up both child sexual abuse material and bestiality videos on both of their cellphones,” according to Miami Local 10 News.

The local news station reports that U.S. Customs and Border (CBP) Protection agents searched the cabins of Igedeboy Mardika (top photograph), a 28-year-old Indonesian national, and Sreerag Vazhayil (bottom photograph), a 32-year-old Indian national, at PortMiami on Sunday. CBP agents “discovered videos of both boys and girls being raped and sexually abused by both men and women; the victims were as young as preschool-aged.”

Vazhayil possessed a “video of a man having sex with a horse, while Mardika had three videos of women having sex with a horse, a dog and a pig,” according to Miami-Dade Police. Mardika also distributed a child sexual abuse video, police said, although the details of this charge were not disclosed.

These two crew members are being criminally charged by prosecutors in the state criminal justice system in this state. Florida is the only state in the U.S. with statutes empowering state law enforcement and state prosecutors to investigate, arrest and prosecute individuals on cruise ships which depart from and return to Florida.

Mardika faces 16 felony charges related to the possession and promotion of child sexual abuse material, along with three counts of possessing bestiality videos.

Vazhayil faces seven felony charges related to the possession of child sexual abuse material as well as one charge of possessing a video depicting sexual conduct with animals.

We have reported on ten other crew members working on cruise ships calling on Miami and Fort Lauderdale who have been arrested on child pornograpy charges since February of this year:

2 Carnival Crew Members:

Iputuagus Karnawan, a/k/a Putu Karnawan (age 28), reportedly worked for Carnival Cruise line in the galley as a cook on the Carnival Conquest. Imadewisma Dana (also age 28), also reportedly worked a cook on the Carnival Conquest. These two Carnival employees were arrested for possession of child sexual abuse materials after they were apprehended last week at PortMiami with child pornography on their phones.

Imadewisma Dana (left), Iputuagus Karnawan (upper right), Carnival Conquest (right).

3 Royal Caribbean Crew Members:

Iwayan Pasek Brahmantara, age 32,(Royal Caribbean assistant waiter on the Wonder of the Seas), Komang Parianta, age 33, (Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas), and Zin Naing Htun, age 36, (Royal Caribbean, ship unknown) were all arrested on charges of possessing child pornography. Brahmantara allegedly had two videos on his phone of girls as young as 5 years old being sexually assaulted by men and a video of a female “engaging in sexual intercourse with a horse.”

Zin Naing Htun (left), Iwayan Pasek Brahmantara (top right), and Komang Parianta (bottom right).

3 Disney Crew Members;

Tirso Anthony Neri, age 44, (Disney Dream), Alvin Gonzalez, age 49, (Disney Dream),  Amiel Trazo, age 28, (Disney Dream) were arrested for possession of child pornography on the same Disney ship. U.S. CBP agents found pornographic images of children as young as age 9 on Neri’s cell phones, age 8 on Gonzalez’s phone, and age 6 on Trazo’s device.

Disney Dream (upper left), Alvin Gonzalez (upper right), Tirso Anthonu Neri (lower left), and Amiel Trazo (lower right).

1 Celebrity Crew Member:

Dennis Ofrancia De Leon, age 44, (Celebrity Reflection). Homeland Security agents found “multiple videos/photographs” depicting child sexual abuse material. The criminal court file indicated that the agents found videos “showing boys and girls being raped or otherwise sexually abused . . .”

Dennis Ofrancia De Leon (left), Celebrity Reflection (right)

1 HAL Crew Member:

Jamaal Wade, age 28, (photo below) employed by RWS Global as a dancer / performer on a Holland America Line cruise ship). He was arrested with child sexual abuse materials “involving minors as young as two years old engaged in sexual acts with adults,” and allegedly sexually abused an eleven year-old boy while on a tour for a performance group before he worked on a cruise ship.

So far, three crew members working for Royal Caribbean, three ship employees on the Disney Dream, two crew member working for Carnival, one crew member working for Holland America Line and one crew member working for Celebrity were arrested on child pornography charges.

Where Did This Latest Crew Members Work?

The question arises who employed the last two crew members and on which cruise ship did they work?

Crackdown On Child Pornography By U.S. and Florida Law Enforcement

There appears that there is an effort by both state and federal law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute people who possess and transport child pornography on cruise ships. It is likely that once law enforcement seizes a crew member’s iPhone and/or computer, they obtain evidence such as social media sites and internet transmissions which share child pornography and/or bestiality images implicating a wide number of ship employees.

Are Cruise Employers Doing Anything to Address the Illegal Conduct?

There remains the fundamental issue whether cruise employers are taking any steps to prohibit child pornography on their ships.

According to the Filipino publication Inquirer: “The Migrant Workers Office (MWO) of the Philippine Embassy in Washington, DC, is working with agencies deploying Filipino seafarers to cruise ships to address the use of child pornography among cruise ship workers. (“At least seven Filipino cruise ship workers have been arrested and detained in Florida for possession and transportation of child pornography within the past six months,” the MWO reported).

“US federal and state laws criminalize the production or promotion of child pornography. Individuals caught possessing, viewing, transporting and distributing child pornography will be prosecuted and penalized.”

The MWO urged the manning (employment) agencies to advise “the seafarers to desist from downloading, possessing, viewing, transporting, distributing and selling child pornography, as well as subscribing to child pornography sites.” But there is no indication that cruise lines are training their ship employees that child pornography is illegal on their cruise ships and there will be consequences if ship employees engage in such conduct.

The question also arises whether child pornography is even illegal in some of the countries where cruise lines recruit their employees such as the Philippines? In 2009, following advocacy by UNICEF and others, child sexual abuse materials were made illegal in the Philippines for the first time. But more needs to be done. “The legal age of sexual consent in the Philippines is still just 12 years old,” according to: UNICEF.

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Image Credit: VAZHAYIL, SREERAG – Miami-Dade-County-Sexual-Predators; MARDIKA, IGEDEBOY – Miami-Dade-County-Sexual-Predators; Carnival Conquest –  NormanEinstein; Celebrity Reflection – Master0Garfield commons/wikimedia; Dennis De Leon; Local 10 News (WPLG); Disney Dream – Ajmexico from Melbourne, USA – CC BY 2.0 commons / wikimedia

Early yesterday morning, a cruise passenger went overboard from the MSC Euribia while the cruise ship was sailing in the Sognefjord fjord between Lavik and Oppedal in Norway.

The Norwegian newspaper Bergens Tidende reports that a passenger “in his late 50’s,” who was traveling with his wife, went overboard around 2:00 a.m. early Thursday morning. The ship sounded an alarm around 2:15 a.m. There are no reported details currently available regarding how or why the person went overboard.

A rescue center in Southern Norway thereafter deployed a rescue helicopter, air ambulance, and several rescue vessels. A rescue boat was also deployed from the MSC ship.

The passenger’s body was located at around 3:00 a.m. and and recovered by a rescue vessel and then taken on board a rescue helicopter and flown to Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen where he was pronounced dead.

The local police in Norway will conduct an investigation and will question the crew and obtain video surveillance from the cruise ship.

The newspaper quotes a local police officer as stating: “This is coded as a suspicious death. We have several hypotheses. It could be an accident, a criminal act, or an intentional act.”

This is the 411th person who has gone overboard since 2000, according to Dr. Ross Klein who maintains the definitive list of cruise ship overboards.

This is also the 7th person who has gone overboard from MSC cruise ships in less than the last seven months.

Two passengers, including this most recent overboard, died after going into the water, one survived and recovered, and three guests and one crew member disappeared in the water.

A twenty-three (23) year-old passenger from Scotland, named Liam Brody Wilkie Jones, went overboard from the MSC Euribia on March 15, 2024.

On February 4, 2024, a passenger fell off the MSC Bellissima cruise ship traveling from Taiwan to Okinawa. According to the Taiwan News, the passenger was located, pulled from the water and then rushed to a hospital, where he was reported to be in good condition following medical treatment.

On December 30, 2023, a passenger went overboard from the MSC Preziosa after the MSC cruise ship left the port of Santos heading to New Year’s Eve festivities in Rio de Janeiro.

A passenger went overboard from the MSC Armonia during a transatlantic cruise to Brazil on December 15, 2023.

A crew member went overboard from the MSC Seascape in waters off of Puerto Rico on November 15, 2023.

Maritime law requires ship owners to immediately take steps to search and rescue passengers (or crew members) as soon as they realize that someone has gone overboard. As a practical matter, this typically involves turning the ship around to the area where the person left the ship. The cruise fan page Cruise Hive reported on this overboard and states that AIS tracking data shows the MSC ship “turning around” shortly after 2:00 a.m.

The crew will often deploy rescue lifecraft and utilize spotlights to search for the overboard person. The captain usually makes announcements that the ship is involved in looking for an overboard guest.

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June 8, 2024:

The New York Post covered the incident.

Image credit: MSC Euribia – Von ND44 – Eigenes Werk, CC BY-SA 4.0 commons / wikimedia.