Cruise cabin cleaner took video of undressed kids in bathroom. He was just sentenced
A former crew member on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship was sentenced Wednesday by a judge in Fort Lauderdale federal court to 30 years in prison on charges of producing child pornography.
Arvin Joseph Mirasol pleaded guilty in June to placing cameras in guest rooms and taking video of people in various states of undress.
Mirasol worked as a stateroom attendant on ships owned by Royal Caribbean. He routinely entered their rooms to clean and change the sheets and towels.
According to court documents, on Feb. 25, a guest on the Symphony of the Seas found a camera attached to the sink while she was using the toilet. The camera could capture the shower. The ship had departed Port Everglades in Fort Lauderale a day earlier.
After she called security, Mirasol was detained for the rest of the cruise. When the ship returned on March 3 to Port Everglades, Mirasol was searched and arrested.
Homeland Security Investigations and Customs and Border Protection boarded the ship and seized his electronics equipment. They said they found several videos of undressed kids. .
The people in the videos are thought to be 2 to 17 years old, according to court documents.
In June, Mirasol, Philippines national who is about 34, pleaded guilty to producing child pornography. Authorities say he earlier admitted that he had been placing cameras in passengers’ rooms since December 2023.
South Florida U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe and Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of HSI Miami, announced the sentencing. HSI Fort Lauderdale investigated the case with assistance from Customs and Border Patrol and Royal Caribbean Group security. Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine Koontz prosecuted the case.
Mirasol was terminated by Royal Caribbean in March after he was arrested. At that time, Jonathon Fishman, a spokesman for Royal Caribbean, told the Miami Herald that “we immediately reported this to law enforcement and terminated the crew member, and we will continue to fully cooperate with authorities.”
The company has since said it does background checks on all employees and conducts training.
This story was originally published August 28, 2024 at 7:22 PM.