Recently, two crew individuals aboard Carnival cruise ships, Abdhul Rouvoof Shaik from India and Reza Heta Pratama from Indonesia, were apprehended by U.S. Homeland Security in New Orleans. The arrest took place two weeks ago after they departed two separate vessels of Carnival Cruise Line, namely Carnival Liberty (above right) and Carnival Valor (above left).
According to a publication in New Orleans, the individuals were taken into custody for the possession and conveyance of child pornography. This news was first reported by the Times Picayune and later by USA TODAY. However, no contextual information was provided regarding the broader issue of child pornography within the cruise industry.
In contrast to previous instances, there have been no publicly available arrest photos or mug shots of these Carnival crew members.
These latest detentions add up to a total of fifteen cruise ship employees arrested for child pornography in just the initial six months of this year, marking an unprecedented surge in such incidents.
Thus far, personnel from five organizations have been detained on charges related to child pornography: Carnival – 6 (or 7); Royal Caribbean – 3; Disney – 3; Celebrity – 1; and Holland America Line – 1. The employer of one detained crew member, Ferry Maryanto, from last month’s arrest remains undisclosed. It is presumed that he may have been employed by Carnival Cruise Line aboard either the Carnival Horizon or the Carnival Magic. His apprehension took place at the Miami port when several cruise vessels, including those of Carnival, Virgin Voyages, and Norwegian Cruise Line, were docking.
Crackdown On Child Porn by U.S. and Florida Authorities in Southern Florida
Given the substantial amount of crew members apprehended on cruise ships in Southern Florida in the past half-year, it seems evident that both state and federal law enforcement agencies are actively probing and pressing charges against individuals in possession of and trafficking in child pornography (and bestiality videos) aboard cruise liners. It’s probable that authorities acquire incriminating evidence, such as traces on social networking platforms and online transmissions, once they confiscate a crew member’s iPhone and/or computer, linking a considerable number of ship staff to child pornographic and/or bestiality materials. Some of these employees seem to engage in the exchange and distribution of illicit images with their counterparts.
The arrest document in the ongoing criminal investigation No. 2:24-mj-00105-DM filed in the federal court for the Eastern District of Louisiana reveals that crew member Shaik was part of a WhatsApp chat group comprising men who exchanged pictures of “children engaging in sexual activity.” He was in talks with his acquaintance from Indonesia and shared and received “porn videos” showing children. The Indonesian individual was labeled a “co-conspirator” in the detention affidavit. Shaik waived his Miranda rights against self-implication and owned up to the arresting special agent on July 14th that he was aware that the video entailed children and that child porn was against the law.
It seems that crew member Pratama was directly linked by Shaik and/or by communications on Shaik’s mobile device. Pratama was apprehended by Homeland Security a few days later, on July 18th.
Reportedly, Carnival discharged Pratama from his post and expunged him from the vessel following earlier claims of unspecified sexual harassment from his colleagues, as referenced in a Homeland Security Investigations affidavit by a special agent.
agent. Pratama also allegedly relinquished his Miranda rights and confessed to acquiring the child exploitation images material from a Telegram group.
It appears evident to me that the federal and state law enforcement officials are collaborating with organizations that utilize cutting-edge surveillance technology wherein specialists supervise child exploitation and file-sharing platforms to create an extensive international repository to apprehend individuals who possess and distribute child abuse content. Read: Inside the Surveillance Software Tracking Child Porn Offenders Across the Globe
It is extraordinary that law enforcement in any specific port would apprehend as numerous as a dozen crew members for child exploitation. Historically, only ports outside of the United States, such as Canada, would detain more than just a few cruise ship employees for child exploitation in any given year. Refer to, Nabbed at Pier 21 – Another Crew Member Busted with Child Porn in Halifax, HAL Cruise Ship Musician Jailed for Child Pornography, Is Child Pornography Widespread on Cruise Ships?, Another Cruise Ship Employee Busted with Child Porn – This Time HAL Veendam, Another Carnival Crew Member Busted for Child Porn, and Costa Crew Member Caught With Child Pornography.
There is undoubtedly a shift in the enforcement policy to intensify the scrutiny of cruise ships as a conduit for child exploitation.
You can delve deeper into the pornography issue on cruise ships here: Epidemic of Child Pornography on Cruise Ships Continues As Two More Crew Members Are Arrested.
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Image credit: Carnival Valor – Mason Piscitelli – CC BY-SA 4.0 commons / wikimedia; Carnival Liberty – Yankeesman312 CC BY-SA 4.0 commons / wikimedia; Stop Abuse Graphic – Stop Child Abuse Campaign.
