Why federal agents boarded cruise ships in San Diego
USA Today • • nation
Key Points:
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers boarded eight cruise ships between April 23 and 27 to detain crew members suspected of involvement with child sexual exploitation material (CSEM), confirming 27 out of 28 suspects were engaged in related illegal activities.
- The detentions included crew members from the Disney Magic and Holland America Line's Zaandam vessels, with CBP canceling visas and deporting those involved, though no criminal charges were specified.
- Disney stated a zero-tolerance policy toward such behavior and confirmed that implicated crew members from their line are no longer employed, while Holland America cooperated but declined to provide details.
- The Port of San Diego's Harbor Police clarified they were not involved in the enforcement actions and do not participate in immigration enforcement per California law.
- This follows a similar incident in September when four Carnival Cruise Line crew members were removed in Baltimore over possession of CSEM, highlighting ongoing CBP enforcement efforts in the cruise industry.
