Royal Caribbean sued over hidden camera possibly filming passengers: lawsuit
The Royal Caribbean cruise ship, Symphony of the Seas, is seen moored in the Port of Miami on August 1, 2021. (Photo by Daniel SLIM / AFP) (Photo by DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images)
A Royal Caribbean International passenger has launched a class-action lawsuit against the company and its former crew member after as many as 960 people may have been victims of a hidden camera in a bathroom on board.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Symphony of the Seas passenger "Jane Doe" and "all other similarly situated passengers" in the Southern District of Florida on Tuesday.
Its filing comes nearly a month after employee Arvin Joseph Mirasol of the Philippines pleaded guilty to producing child pornography and was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison.
A guest aboard the ship discovered a hidden camera affixed to the counter under the sink in their bathroom on Feb. 25 and reported it to ship security. Mirasol, a stateroom attendant, was detained until the cruise ship docked at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, according to the United States Attorney's Office of the Southern District of Florida.
Law enforcement found numerous videos of children between the ages of 2 and 17 in various states of dress on his electronic devices, according to the office. But Mirasol's surveillance wasn't limited to children, according to the lawsuit.
"Upon information and belief, Mirasol transmitted and/or uploaded images of the Plaintiff while undressed and engaging in private activities, to third parties and/or to the world wide web, including, but not limited to, the dark web, without Plaintiff’s prior knowledge or consent," the complaint states.
Mirasol allegedly hid under passenger's beds to spy on them and filmed them while they showered, the lawsuit claims.
The lawsuit alleges that Royal Caribbean "should have known sexual assaults were reasonably foreseeable considering the prevalence of sexual assaults about RCCL's cruise ships," and that the company should have warned guests and properly trained staff.
According to the suit, there were a total of 26 sexual assaults and rapes reported during RCCL cruises in 2023; and 22 sexual assaults reported during RCCL cruises in 2022. There were 131 allegations of sexual assault on cruise ships in 2023, up from 87 in 2022 and 101 in 2019, USA Today reported.
According to the complaint, the cruise line did not inform other passengers in rooms serviced by Mirasol between Dec. 1, 2023, and Feb. 26, 2024. Up to 960 passengers could have been filmed, the suit alleges.
"Sexual assaults, including voyeurism, aboard cruise ships is at an all time high and needs to be addressed," Jason Margulies, an attorney with Lipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A., representing the plaintiff, told Fox News Digital.
"Royal Caribbean became aware of this problem in March of 2023 when a hidden camera was found in a public bathroom on the pool deck of one of its ships, yet it has seemingly done nothing since then to protect its passengers from reoccurrences – like these instances which went on for nearly three months, over the course of 12 cruises, and involved up to 960 passengers including many children," Marguiles said.
"Who knows how many countless numbers of pornographic images of these unsuspecting passengers will be circulating on the internet forever because Royal Caribbean failed to protect their privacy and allowed Mirasol to make these passengers victims."
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