A Royal Caribbean International passenger has launched a class-action lawsuit against the corporate and its former crew member after as many as 960 people could have been victims of a hidden camera in a toilet on board.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Symphony of the Seas passenger “Jane Doe” and “all other similarly situated passengers” within the Southern District of Florida on Tuesday.
Its filing comes nearly a month after worker 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 of 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, in keeping with america Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Florida.
Law enforcement found quite a few videos of kids between the ages of two and 17 in various states of dress on his electronic devices, in keeping with the office. But Mirasol’s surveillance wasn’t limited to children, in keeping with the lawsuit.
“Upon information and belief, Mirasol transmitted and/or uploaded images of the Plaintiff while undressed and interesting in private activities, to 3rd parties and/or to the world wide web, including, but not limited to, the dark web, without Plaintiff’s prior knowledge or consent,” the grievance 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 “must have known sexual assaults were reasonably foreseeable considering the prevalence of sexual assaults about RCCL’s cruise ships,” and that the corporate must have warned guests and properly trained staff.
In accordance with the suit, there have been a complete of 26 sexual assaults and rapes reported during RCCL cruises in 2023; and 22 sexual assaults reported during RCCL cruises in 2022. There have been 131 allegations of sexual assault on cruise ships in 2023, up from 87 in 2022 and 101 in 2019, USA Today reported.
In accordance with the grievance, the cruise line didn’t inform other passengers in rooms serviced by Mirasol between Dec. 1, 2023, and Feb. 26, 2024. As much as 960 passengers might have been filmed, the suit alleges.
“Sexual assaults, including voyeurism, aboard cruise ships is at an all-time high and desires 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 present in a public bathroom on the pool deck of certainly one of its ships, yet it has seemingly done nothing since then to guard its passengers from reoccurrences – like these instances which went on for nearly three months, over the course of 12 cruises, and involved as much as 960 passengers including many children,” Marguiles said.
“Who knows what number of countless numbers of pornographic images of those unsuspecting passengers will likely be circulating on the web endlessly because Royal Caribbean did not protect their privacy and allowed Mirasol to make these passengers victims.”
Royal Caribbean International didn’t reply to Fox News Digital’s request for comment at press time.
