Margaritaville cruise bartender accused of raping, impregnating married woman in cabin, forcing her to get an abortion



A Margaritaville cruise ship bartender is accused of raping a passenger in her cabin. The cruise passenger claimed she needed to get an abortion after being impregnated by the bartender.

An anonymous woman, Jane Doe, from West Virginia filed a federal lawsuit against Classica's Margaritaville at Sea cruise line in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Doe and a female travel companion – named "HB" in court documents – were aboard the Margaritaville at Sea Paradise ship headed to the Bahamas from Riviera Beach, Florida.

On May 5, the women ordered alcoholic beverages on the ship.

"They both charged the beverages to their cabin number, thereby providing crew members staffing the bar access to their shared cabin number and room key," the lawsuit states.

After finishing their drinks, the women returned to their cabin around 1 a.m.

The travel companion admitted that she had been "pretty intoxicated" after reaching her 10-drink limit.

The filing claims that their 24-year-old bartender, Hoobesh Kumar Dookhy, snuck into their cabin in the middle of the night with the stolen key card.

"HB stated that she was sleeping when she was awakened by a male subject touching her breasts, kissing her neck, and vaginally penetrating her," the lawsuit alleges.

Fox News reported, "Dookhy and the women agree that he took his phone out to photograph the women, who slept naked, as he groped them. The woman filing a civil suit also claims that she took out her phone to videotape Dookhy sexually assaulting her friend for evidence after asking him to leave."

Jane Doe reported the sexual assault to cruise ship staff the next morning.

Investigators allegedly found HB's room key in the pocket of Dookhy's work vest, as well as a naked photo of her.

Doe – who is married – claimed that she was pregnant several months later. She allegedly admitted that she hadn't taken a paternity test, but argued that she and her husband hadn't been sexually active at the time of the alleged assault because of medical reasons.

Doe reportedly traveled out of state to get an abortion after the alleged sexual assault resulted in pregnancy.

The woman is seeking $75,000 in damages from Classica's Margaritaville at Sea cruise line. Doe claims to have "suffered physical, emotional and psychological pain,” as well as “embarrassment, humiliation, sustained mental anguish,” and “aggravation and activation of preexisting conditions, and sustained disability and the inability to lead a normal life."

HB previously filed a lawsuit over the alleged sexual assault. However, U.S. District Judge Robin Rosenberg shot down her request for punitive damages. She is currently seeking compensatory damages from the cruise line.

Doe's attorney, Spencer Aronfeld, told the Palm Beach Post that the two cases are "completely different" because Doe “became pregnant, and was forced to terminate the pregnancy from which she suffered serious complications."

In an interview with FBI agents, Dookhy allegedly confessed to drinking alcohol the night of the alleged sexual assault. However, he initially claimed that he had participated in consensual sex with HB.

Yet, Dookhy accepted a plea deal last year, where he avoided the possibility of life behind bars by pleading guilty to one count of abusive sexual contact.

Dookhy is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 11. He faces up to two years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

A spokesperson for Margaritaville at Sea Paradise declined USA Today's request for comment.

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Cruise ship youth counselor admits to molesting several young girls, FBI says



A Celebrity Cruises youth counselor admitted to molesting young girls while working at the ship's youth center, according to the FBI.

Cris John Pentinio Castor, 35, was taken into custody on Friday after the Celebrity Silhouette cruise ship returned to Port Everglades in Florida. Castor — who is a citizen of the Philippines — remained at Broward County’s Paul Rein Detention Facility on U.S. Marshals and immigration holds, according to jail records.

Castor was charged with abusive sexual contact of a minor under 12.

The cruise ship left Florida on Nov. 20 for a 10-day voyage in the Caribbean.

On Nov. 27, a 6-year-old girl told her parents that the youth counselor molested her while she was at the ship's Camp at Sea youth center, according to a criminal complaint. The young girl said "CJ" — the name the children called Castor — inappropriately touched her "private parts," according to the affidavit filed in federal court in Florida on Friday.

WPLG reported, "Upon the ship’s return to South Florida, she told a forensic investigator that Castor touched her 'where the pee comes from' while she played a video game, the complaint states."

Law enforcement officials said the security camera video didn't show the alleged molestation but did show Castor's hand reaching towards the child’s lap as she was playing.

"(Castor) told law enforcement that he was aware and understood that he knowingly touched the minor victim in the vicinity of her vagina," according to the FBI complaint.

The FBI said Castor confessed to molesting multiple children.

"(Castor) also admitted to the inappropriate sexual touching of other minor children that were in his care at the youth center, on multiple occasions, while consciously hiding his acts from the youth center’s security cameras,” the complaint read. “Furthermore, (Castor) admitted to inappropriately touching at least three additional minor children in their vaginal area, in some cases making skin-to-skin contact.”

A Celebrity Cruises spokesperson told USA Today, "We have zero tolerance for this behavior. We reported this to law enforcement and terminated the crew member, and we will continue to fully cooperate with authorities."

Castor’s attorney, Robert Berube, declined to provide a comment to the outlet.

Castor had reportedly worked as a youth counselor since August.

Castor is scheduled to appear in Fort Lauderdale federal court on Friday for a detention hearing.

USA Today reported that there were 87 allegations of sexual assault on cruise ships embarking and disembarking in the U.S. last year, based on a cruise line incident report from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

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Cruise ship passengers traumatized after witnessing bloody slaughter of 78 pilot whales, company apologizes



A cruise line has apologized to passengers who were traumatized by witnessing dozens of pilot whales being slaughtered in a bloody harbor.

On Sunday, the cruise ship Ambition – owned by the U.K.-based Ambassador Cruise Line – arrived at the port of Tórshavn in the Faroe Islands between Scotland and Iceland. The Ambition cruise ship was reportedly carrying more than 1,000 passengers when it sailed by the whale hunt.

Yahoo News Australia reported, "Cruise ship passengers were shocked when the luxury vessel Ambition moored at a European island where locals were butchering wild dolphins with knives and metal rods."

The pilot whales were reportedly forced into the harbor and then killed.

Graphic photos of the whale hunt – known as the "grindadrap" or "grind" – were posted on Facebook by Captain Paul Watson Foundation U.K.

Photos show that the harbor turned red from the massive slaughter of the pilot whales – which are actually dolphins.

Ambassador Cruise Lines issued an apology on Thursday: "We were incredibly disappointed that this hunt occurred at the time that our ship was in port. We strongly object to this outdated practice, and have been working with our partner, ORCA, a charity dedicated to studying and protecting whales, dolphins and porpoises in UK and European waters, to encourage change since 2021."

"Sustainability is one of Ambassador Cruise Line’s core values, and we fully appreciate that witnessing this local event would have been distressing for the majority of guests onboard," the cruise line said. "Accordingly, we would like to sincerely apologize to them for any undue upset."

Christian Verhounig, the CEO of Ambassador, said the cruise line had "constructive dialogue" with the Faroese government. He advised guests and cruise crew "not to buy or eat any whale or dolphin meat and stand against any profiteering from commercial whaling and dolphin hunts."

Defenders of the whale hunt say the event is a tradition in the Faroe Islands – a self-governing nation under the external sovereignty of Denmark.

The government of the Faroe Islands responded by saying, "As has been the case for centuries, whaling still occurs in the Faroe Islands today. The Faroese have eaten pilot whale meat and blubber since they first settled the islands over a millennia ago. Today, as in times past, the whale drive is a community activity open to all, while also well organized on a community level and regulated by national laws."

"Pilot whales are actually large dolphins; they are the second largest member of the oceanic dolphin family (second only to orcas in size)," according to Whales.org. "Pilot whales are extraordinarily social; their strong bonds with one another motivate them to stick together through thick and thin, even when that means putting themselves at risk."

There have been 646 whales killed in the Faroe Islands this year, including the 78 killed on Sunday.

NPR reported, "They're protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act, but not currently listed as an endangered species."

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