Authorities arrested nearly a dozen crew members from Holland America Line and Norwegian Cruise Line ships for allegedly receiving and distributing images of child sexual abuse.
Customs and Border Protection officers and Homeland Security Investigations agents boarded Holland America’s Volendam and Norwegian Breakaway in Boston between Aug. 14 and 16.
“Following a comprehensive search of the subjects' living quarters and electronic devices, and consultation with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, all 11 individuals were processed for removal under Section 212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) of the Immigration and Nationality Act for crimes involving moral turpitude,” CBP said in an Aug. 20 news release. “The individuals were processed with the assistance of the shipping
agent and are scheduled to depart the United States.”
Nine were citizens of the Philippines, while the other two were citizens of Indonesia and Nicaragua. Officials did not share the individuals’ identities.
“These allegations are deeply disturbing, and we have zero tolerance for criminal behavior,” Holland America Line told USA TODAY in an emailed statement. “We are fully cooperating with law enforcement and immediately terminated the individuals involved.”
Norwegian, for its part, said it was aware of the situation and “cooperating with the appropriate authorities.”
“The safety, security, and well-being of our guests are of paramount importance, and we remain committed to maintaining a safe and secure environment across our fleet,” the cruise line told USA TODAY in an emailed statement.
The arrests were part of Operation Tidal Wave, a multi-agency effort aimed at addressing the production, procurement, possession, use and distribution of child sexual abuse and exploitation material among cruise crew members, CBP said. A previous phase in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in June and July resulted in administrative enforcement actions for 14 crew members from three ships and “the acceptance of federal prosecution” for one.
Following the operation’s first phase, which took place in San Diego in April 27, crew members from six ships faced administrative enforcement actions and “were processed for removal and returned to their home countries.”
“Protecting children from exploitation is among our highest priorities, and this operation demonstrates the critical role CBP officers play in identifying and stopping individuals who pose a threat to public safety,” Acting Director of Field Operations for CBP’s Boston Field Office Julio Caravia said in the release.
The news comes after a number of arrests of crew members from various cruise lines on similar charges in recent years.
Anthony Salisbury, then special agent in charge at Homeland Security Investigations Miami, told USA TODAY in 2024 that child exploitation was "significantly higher across the board," and not only in the cruise industry.
"If it's up across the board, you're going to see it up across the cruise ships," he said at the time.
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 11 cruise crew members arrested for alleged child sex abuse images
