There is only vague information so far about a death on Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas. A passenger, probably drunk, had attacked crew members and kicked in a door behind which one of them was hiding. Security staff overpowered the man and he died in custody a short time later.
Neither Royal Caribbean nor the FBI, which is now under investigation, has yet provided any concrete information about the incident that occurred on the Navigator of the Seas shortly after the cruise ship left the San Pedro cruise port near Los Angeles on Friday, January 13, 2024. Media reports are based primarily on the statements of an eyewitness who filmed parts of the incident on his cell phone.
The few known facts: A heavyset 35-year-old man, apparently drunk or under the influence of drugs, repeatedly kicked in the door of a cabin on the Navigator of the Seas. The shipping company's security team shields the scene and waits, presumably to wait for the moment when the man runs out of strength. In the meantime, the man had taken off his T-shirt and was hurling racist insults at those present. He is then wrestled to the ground and arrested. Within an hour of this, the man dies. The cause of death is not yet known.
Before this scene, which was captured on video, the man allegedly attacked and punched or kicked two crew members. One of them then apparently barricaded himself in the cabin, whose door the man then kicked in. The videotaping witness told Fox 11 that he, too, was threatened by the man and was unable to fly out of the cabin aisle.
The 35-year-old rioter was on the cruise with his fiancé and his seven-year-old autistic son – according to information that the TV station Fox 11 received from the man's relatives. The dead man's family also told Fox 11 that he was injected with a sedative by security guards. It cannot be independently confirmed whether this is true, especially since the man is said to have been previously incapacitated with pepper spray and tied with his hands.
Royal Caribbean has so far only issued a brief statement about the incident, which has been quoted in several media outlets: “We are very saddened by the death of one of our guests.” We have offered the family our support and are cooperating with the authorities in their investigation. “
The FBI has not yet provided any further information about the incident or the investigation. The American Federal Police began an investigation after the Navigator of the Seas docked in Los Angeles on Monday, December 16th after its short cruise to Mexico.
