CBP Cancels 27 Cruise Crew Visas Over Child Exploitation Allegations

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers boarded cruise ships at the Port of San Diego in late April and removed crew members, an enforcement action that drew public demands from Union del Barrio and other community groups after passengers filmed uniformed workers being taken from Disney Magic. CBP later said the broader operation covered eight cruise ships and resulted in 27 visa cancellations and deportations tied by the agency to child sexual exploitation material.

The agency said officers acted from April 23 to 27. Local groups had initially identified roughly 10 crew members taken from Disney Cruise Line's Disney Magic on April 23 and four more from Holland America Line's Zaandam two days later; CBP said the wider operation involved 28 interviewed crew members from the Philippines, Portugal and Indonesia.

CBP describes an eight-ship operation

CBP said officers interviewed 26 suspected crew members from the Philippines, one from Portugal and one from Indonesia during the San Diego operation. The agency said it determined that 27 of the 28 were involved in the receipt, possession, transportation, distribution or viewing of child sexual exploitation material or child pornography, then canceled their visas and deported them to their countries of citizenship.

CBP did not release the crew members' names. The agency also did not say whether criminal charges had been filed in the United States, and the FBI referred questions about possible prosecution to CBP. The two ships publicly identified in connection with the San Diego actions were Disney Magic and Holland America Line's Zaandam.

Passenger video led to public pressure

The enforcement action first drew local attention after passenger Dharmi Mehta filmed crew members being escorted from Disney Magic while she and other passengers were leaving the San Diego cruise terminal. Mehta said she recognized one of the detained workers as a server from her sailing to Catalina Island and Ensenada.

"Some of the other employees were still in their chef's uniforms with their name tags on it," Mehta said. She said the server she recognized had been working breakfast service less than an hour earlier; video showed workers in restraints being placed into CBP vehicles.

At a May 5 press conference, Union del Barrio and other community groups demanded that CBP explain the legal basis for the removals and provide information about where the crew members were taken. The groups said the workers appeared to have been performing duties on board and were not attempting to leave the ships, and they called for access to ensure legal rights and family contact.

Cruise lines and port address their roles

Disney Cruise Line said it cooperated with law enforcement. "We have a zero-tolerance policy for this type of behavior," a Disney spokesperson said, adding that "the majority of these individuals were not from our cruise line" and that Disney employees involved were no longer with the company.

Holland America Line said it also cooperated with CBP and confirmed that some of its crew members were involved. A spokesperson called the allegations "deeply disturbing" and said the affected employees had been terminated.

The Port of San Diego's Harbor Police Department said it had no involvement in the April 23 or April 25 actions at the B Street Cruise Terminal and received no related calls for service. The port said Harbor Police does not participate in immigration enforcement under California law, including SB 54, and noted that the terminal operates as a federal port of entry under CBP jurisdiction.

The San Diego actions followed a September case in Baltimore in which CBP said four Carnival Cruise Line crew members were removed from a ship based on intelligence that crew members possessed child sexual exploitation material. Filipino community groups had also raised concerns last year about cruise crew members being taken from ships and placed on flights to the Philippines.

CBP has not said what triggered the April operation in San Diego. It also has not announced whether any of the deported crew members will face prosecution in U.S. courts.