Legal Commentary

Luxury Cruise Crew Busted With 50 Kilos of Cocaine

By Jeralyn

In the Smugglers Blues department: Two crew members of the Royal Caribbean cruise ship were busted after more than 50 kilos of cocaine were found in their cabins and on one of their persons. The ship had been in Cartegena, and was docked at Montego Bay when the drugs were discovered. According to this news video (no commercials), the first crew member had exited the ship wearing "rather roomy clothing" drawing police suspicion. He was searched, and after the coke was found on his body, was taken back to the ship where more was found in his cabin. Then they got a second crew member.

Is it a new trend? Two weeks ago, a Jamaican waiter on the cruise ship Explorer of the Seas was sentenced to 15 years for bringing four kilos of coke into Bermuda. [More...] The waiter, Ricardo Stewart, 32, of Ochos Rios, said he was innocent and framed, and pointed out he had worked on the ship for 9 1/2 years, and was married with children, but the Court found he was the organizer of the operation. How? The other crew members caught in the scheme put the blame on him when trying to get lighter sentences for themselves. And $4,900.00 was found stashed in a laundry box in his cabin.

There's a big difference between 4 kilos and 50 kilos, but this may be just the tip of the iceberg as authorities say drug busts on cruise ships are on the rise. In December, there was a bust on another Royal Caribbean ship, Enchantment of the Seas.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on February 26, 2011 (boomark / email).