A former crew member on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship was sentenced Wednesday by a judge in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 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 February 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 Lauderdale 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 children.
The people in the videos are thought to be 2 to 17 years old, according to court documents.
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Mirasol had been recording videos since December 2023.
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 US 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 US Attorney Catherine Koontz prosecuted the case.
The cruise ship employee lost his job.
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.
-by Vinod Sreeharsha, Miami Herald (TNS)
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