Disney Cover Up Exposed: 11-year-old girl molested on Disney Dream

[Lewisc]

With all due respect, my mind is right where is should be referring to Maritime matters.

1. The vessel is a Bahamas registered vessel in a Bahamas port. Bahamas law prevails.

2. There is a crew contract that is written by foreign crewing services that MAY require the crew be returned to his home country for legal action.


Just for the record.......Please notice the MAY and please notice I never even so much as implied I agree with Disney actions.


There are still a good deal of details we don't know.

AKK

May implies you think you have some expectation your point has some merit.

1) The offense took place at dock. No discussion as to how close to shore the ship was.

2) Florida, not the Bahamas has jurisdiction.

3) DCL failed to report this to the FL authorities before the ship sailed

4) DCL decided to fire the crew member and fly him to India rather then wait and turn him over to FL authorities when the ship returned to Florida.

5) There may be a requirement to fly a fired crew member home but who said Disney had to fire the crew member at that time?

To other posters. Disney didn't turn the perp over to FL before the ship sailed. Disney flew the perp to India rather then turn him over when the ship returned to Florida. That is the definition of coverup.

Disney apologists find this hard to believe.

 

[mm1971]

Crimes get reported to the jurisdiction in which it happened, that article clearly states the ship was docked at Port Canaveral. There is NO reason for it to be reported in Bahamas. If I get assaulted on a street in NYC, in a car with Texas plates... does that mean the jurisdiction is Texas?? I'd think not.

I love your line "As soon as it was reported to be a DCL, everyone would have jumped to cover the story" Yeah, and SO WHAT??!! An 11 year old girl was molested. What?! Are you kidding me? Disney must maintain a perfect reputation at all costs??

Disney ruins its reputation by trying to squash incidents like these.

Ummm....I think you missed my intent. I wasn't concerned with Disney. It was the family and all of the reporters that would be camped outside their house interviewing the neighbors, friends, classmates and family members. Please don't think I am saying Disney did the right thing.

Attacking my comment for understanding and having compassion for why the grandmother wanted to drop the charges? I apologize if my comments were not clear. At no point did I apologize or present that Disney had no obligation. Only that I personally did not know what that obligation was. Jeeesh.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

May implies you think you have some expectation your point has some merit.


Yes I did have questions, expectations and the professional background to back it up:

1) The offense took place at dock. No discussion as to how close to shore the ship was.

no disagreement

2) Florida, not the Bahamas has jurisdiction.[/COLOR]

BY Maritime law Bahamas can and I now know DID assert jurisdiction. But so could have Florida, state and the feds.


3) DCL failed to report this to the FL authorities before the ship sailed

no disagreement

4) DCL decided to fire the crew member and fly him to India rather then wait and turn him over to FL authorities when the ship returned to Florida.

I have not seen where they fired him, but they may have

5) There may be a requirement to fly a fired crew member home but who said Disney had to fire the crew member at that time?

At that time The Bahamas authorities were investigating and has asserted authority. I do not know what they may or may not have required.

To other posters. Disney didn't turn the perp over to FL before the ship sailed. Disney flew the perp to India rather then turn him over when the ship returned to Florida. That is the definition of coverup.

Disney apologists find this hard to believe.


In my post you quoted but did not add, I was asked a specific question as to what legal basis there COULD be for flying him home?? Which I answered


1. The vessel is a Bahamas registered vessel in a Bahamas port. Bahamas law prevails.

2. There is a crew contract that is written by foreign crewing services that MAY require the crew be returned to his home country for legal action.

Seem you are more interested in trying to label me a apologist then deal in facts or even the questions involved.

As I previously stated and will repeat for you.....I have in no way even implied that I support DCL's actions and that come outright and said the Masters actions were as best wrong.....and I will add here, they could have legal repercussions.

AKK

 

[Tormania]

I question if DCL behaved as they did and helped to try to sweep all this under the rug cause the victim and her family were from Brazil? Cause I venture to say an American family would NOT have let this just go away and DCL probably knew that the Brazilian family would not pursue any further action, especially after the grandmother asked to stop the investigation.

 

[eadavis]

To other posters. Disney didn't turn the perp over to FL before the ship sailed. Disney flew the perp to India rather then turn him over when the ship returned to Florida. That is the definition of coverup.

Disney apologists find this hard to believe.

Not necessarily, if Disney wanted to cover this up, they would throw money at the guests, send the guy home, give everyone non-disclosure agreements and go on their merry way.

I am admitting, I am going to defend the actions if Disney below, you have been warned...

I wouldn't call this a cover up. After reading a few other articles out there, there are many variables that aren't disclosed. We don't know the precise wording the girl used when she reported this to guest services, journalists have been known to fill in the blanks to add an air of drama and intrigue when there is no information that could speak to the contrary. At the time the incident was reported, it may have started out as a guest complaining about a Cast Member behaving inappropriately because the girl, being young, and brazilian, didn't know how to properly explain the situation, especially if there was a language barrier. By the time they set sail they could have still been in that frame of thinking, not a cause for delaying their departure from port. As their investigation dove deeper, they may have discovered criminal activity. Articles also say that Bahamian authorities were contacted, as was the next port and the case was taken by them. It says the family declined to press charges, if that was the case, he would be fired and sent home. When the ship finally returned to Florida, the family had already declined to press charges, the guy had been sent home.

My thinking is, the family took all aspects into consideration, they are international, if things go to court, they would have to travel back and forth and possibly considered that it was more trouble than it was worth.

I've read that there are types of crimes, that even if the victim declines to press charges, prosecution can still be pursued. I would assume that this is a case that would fall into that bucket in the US. However, if the case was in Bahamian jurisdiction, it may be a different story.

Ending Disney defense...

It sounds like this happened last year. Not sure why its surfacing now. However, since the case was never looked at in the US, being a felony, the stature of limitations still allows this case to be looked at. I'm not sure, but India is probably an extradition country. If they wanted, they could get this guy from India and persecute him. But this wouldn't be the family's or Disney's call, it would be the state of Florida. I think this guy should pay for what he did, the safety of children should be placed above all else.

I think if they published excerpts from the security report, it would be very revealing into how things first unfolded...

 

[PatriciaH]

I THINK IT IS A HUGE COVER UP !

1) The DCL should have called the Florida (FDLE) cops.
2) It was within the jurisdiction of FDLE.
3) I think DCL waited until 3-miles off coast
. . . the are in international waters
. . . they don't have to involve FDLE
. . . they don't rile current passengers
. . . they don't get immediate BAD PRESS after calling FDLE
. . . THE SHIP DOESN'T MISS THE SAILING TIME
4) I think the last two are the biggies.
5) The bad press on a Disney ship would have made national news.
6) The cops could have taken hours to investigate, and the sailing missed
. . . the cruise line could not afford a delay in schedule
. . . if there was a delay, word might have gotten out to current passengers
. . . there could have been major problems on-board with passengers

NOTE: I also think that DCL is covering it up, due to the changing
answers and stories they gave about the incident.

I just canceled our Dream cruise for the fall and told them why.

 

[Lewisc]

Not necessarily, if Disney wanted to cover this up, they would throw money at the guests, send the guy home, give everyone non-disclosure agreements and go on their merry way.

I am admitting, I am going to defend the actions if Disney below, you have been warned...

I wouldn't call this a cover up. After reading a few other articles out there, there are many variables that aren't disclosed. .........
I think if they published excerpts from the security report, it would be very revealing into how things first unfolded...

You would have done the coverup differently. Maybe better then Disney. Disney didn't call the FL police before the ship left. Disney didn't make the crew member available to FL when the ship returned. That's the definition of a coverup. You want speculation. Maybe DCL compensated the family on the spot. On board credit. Maybe the story coming out is the result of a CM who is appalled at what happened.

The crime took place in the United States. The only reason to get the Bahamian police involved was to make it disappear.

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

This is a serious matter and cheap remarks like this are really in poor taste.

AKK

It's a freaking' Disney board discussion forum! There is no fallout from what we say. There is No consequence. Poor taste or not I stand by my inane and sophomoric comments!

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

It's a freaking' Disney board discussion forum! There is no fallout from what we say. There is No consequence. Poor taste or not I stand by my inane and sophomoric comments!

But a show of manners and repsect for a child attacked is the consequence.

However you are entitled to say what you want, no matter what it may demonstrate about yourself.

AKK

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

Duplicate post.

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

But a show of manners and repsect for a child attacked is the consequence.

However you are entitled to say what you want, no matter what it may demonstrate about yourself.

AKK

That truly made me laugh out loud! I hope it was tounge in cheek, otherwise it's just sad.

Sorry for the misdirection folks. I'll return you to your regally scheduled debate, where I am very happy to see people wanting to hold Disney's feet to the fire. This is a serious incident that I would think anyone would want Disney to deal with the right way no matter what.

 

[alice99]

I just canceled our Dream cruise for the fall and told them why.

I feel bad that you cancelled your cruise, but , it is nice to see someone willing to make a personal sacrifice on principles.

 

[PatriciaH]

I feel bad that you cancelled your cruise, but , it is nice to see someone willing to make a personal sacrifice on principles.

Thanks. We were really looking forward to it-and we don't even have kids. I just can not support the way they handled this. There are plenty of other places to vacation. I really love Disney too

 

[Lewisc]

That truly made me laugh out loud! I hope it was tounge in cheek, otherwise it's just sad.

Sorry for the misdirection folks. I'll return you to your regally scheduled debate, where I am very happy to see people wanting to hold Disney's feet to the fire. This is a serious incident that I would think anyone would want Disney to deal with the right way no matter what.

I interpreted your post as part tongue in cheek and part a way to "poke a stick" at the Disney apologists.

I can't believe how many posters missed parts of the article. Accept the article as true and there isn't any question of a coverup. One poster thinks DCL could have done a better job covering it up.

 

[Magic Fanatic]

Not necessarily, if Disney wanted to cover this up, they would throw money at the guests, send the guy home, give everyone non-disclosure agreements and go on their merry way.

I am admitting, I am going to defend the actions if Disney below, you have been warned...

I wouldn't call this a cover up. After reading a few other articles out there, there are many variables that aren't disclosed. We don't know the precise wording the girl used when she reported this to guest services, journalists have been known to fill in the blanks to add an air of drama and intrigue when there is no information that could speak to the contrary. At the time the incident was reported, it may have started out as a guest complaining about a Cast Member behaving inappropriately because the girl, being young, and brazilian, didn't know how to properly explain the situation, especially if there was a language barrier. By the time they set sail they could have still been in that frame of thinking, not a cause for delaying their departure from port. As their investigation dove deeper, they may have discovered criminal activity. Articles also say that Bahamian authorities were contacted, as was the next port and the case was taken by them. It says the family declined to press charges, if that was the case, he would be fired and sent home. When the ship finally returned to Florida, the family had already declined to press charges, the guy had been sent home.

My thinking is, the family took all aspects into consideration, they are international, if things go to court, they would have to travel back and forth and possibly considered that it was more trouble than it was worth.

I've read that there are types of crimes, that even if the victim declines to press charges, prosecution can still be pursued. I would assume that this is a case that would fall into that bucket in the US. However, if the case was in Bahamian jurisdiction, it may be a different story.

Ending Disney defense...

It sounds like this happened last year. Not sure why its surfacing now. However, since the case was never looked at in the US, being a felony, the stature of limitations still allows this case to be looked at. I'm not sure, but India is probably an extradition country. If they wanted, they could get this guy from India and persecute him. But this wouldn't be the family's or Disney's call, it would be the state of Florida. I think this guy should pay for what he did, the safety of children should be placed above all else.

I think if they published excerpts from the security report, it would be very revealing into how things first unfolded...

I agree with everything you have stated. I went back and re-read the original post and realized that the actual news article never used the term cover up, that was posted in the original title of this tread by the original poster. I am not apologizing for anyone but this story has way too many variable for it to be some great cover up. As mentioned, if there truly is anything to this story, the State of Florida can step in at anytime and start an investigation. I may be wrong, but at this point I have seen nothing as to where this has happened.

Several years ago, there was a case where a young girl was allegedly sexually abused while on a Disney property. There were actual photos of the girl in at one of the resorts and Disney cooperated by identifying the background scenes in the photographs to help determine exactly what resort the photograph was taken in to assist in trying to identify the adult responsible. The topic got a lot of attention on this very message board. I only mention this to point out that Disney has a history of cooperation when these things happen.

No doubt, something happened but I am not inclined to accept everything verbatim from a news article.

 

[PatriciaH]

I guess it looks like the AG may be looking at the case now:

http://www.cruiselawnews.com/tags/milton-braganza/

Disney Cruise Line's decision to sail its Disney Dream out of the jurisdiction to Nassau, Bahamas has caused concern and outrage not only with the local police department in Brevard County but has also caught the attention of the new Attorney General for Brevard County, Phil Archer.

After watching the video tape obtained by WKMG Channel 6 in Orlando and learning that Disney had assisted the assailant crew member in leaving the jurisdiction and avoiding prosecution, Attorney General Archer said he was "sickened." He vowed to prosecute crimes on cruise ships which are all too often not timely reported to the local law enforcement or are ignored by the FBI.

According to WKMG, which again aired an informative report on this disturbing case, Archer said that "at least two crimes" may have occurred on the Disney Dream while in Brevard County's waters: "false imprisonment, as the suspect cornered the child in the elevator, which he prevented from moving by blocking the door as he appeared to molest her; and lewd or lascivious molestation on a child under 12, a felony that could have produced a life sentence."

Archer characterized the Disney molestation case as "serious" and promised vigorous prosecutions of crimes like this in order to protect other families who may cruise in the future. The local police chief also promised a more active role in investigating allegations of cruise ship crimes and completing reports.

When asked to respond to Disney's excuse that the child's grandmother allegedly said she did not want to pursue a criminal prosecution in the Bahamas, Attorney General Archer said: "the decision to prosecute that serious a crime in Florida rests with a prosecutor, not a grandmother."

 

[MomToOne]

Last week, DCL said the crime was reported to the police right away, but changed the story after speaking with WKMG and Port Canaveral authorities.

The cruise line said other employees did not know about the incident until the next day; on August 5, they claim to only have known that a child was "made to feel uncomfortable."

(1) They claimed to have reported it to police "right away", but they didn't
(2) They claimed they didn't know about it until the next day, but their own report shows they knew about it almost immediately and
(3) They say they thought it wasn't abuse, but clearly had video that showed otherwise

COVER UP

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

That truly made me laugh out loud! I hope it was tounge in cheek, otherwise it's just sad.

Sorry for the misdirection folks. I'll return you to your regally scheduled debate, where I am very happy to see people wanting to hold Disney's feet to the fire. This is a serious incident that I would think anyone would want Disney to deal with the right way no matter what.

Glad to see you finally are taking this seriously unlike your earlier comments:

Originally Posted by Peter Pirate 2 View Post
Plus 1.

What a "magical" experience this was. Will Disney use this in their advertising? But what about the apologists? Is anything more sacred than maintaining the sanctity of Disney???


Originally Posted by Peter Pirate 2 View Post
It's a freaking' Disney board discussion forum! There is no fallout from what we say. There is No consequence. Poor taste or not I stand by my inane and sophomoric comments!



AKK

 

[alice99]

Last week, DCL said the crime was reported to the police right away, but changed the story after speaking with WKMG and Port Canaveral authorities.

The cruise line said other employees did not know about the incident until the next day; on August 5, they claim to only have known that a child was "made to feel uncomfortable."

(1) They claimed to have reported it to police "right away", but they didn't
(2) They claimed they didn't know about it until the next day, but their own report shows they knew about it almost immediately and
(3) They say they thought it wasn't abuse, but clearly had video that showed otherwise

COVER UP

Bingo!

I guess it looks like the AG may be looking at the case now:

http://www.cruiselawnews.com/tags/milton-braganza/

Disney Cruise Line's decision to sail its Disney Dream out of the jurisdiction to Nassau, Bahamas has caused concern and outrage not only with the local police department in Brevard County but has also caught the attention of the new Attorney General for Brevard County, Phil Archer.

After watching the video tape obtained by WKMG Channel 6 in Orlando and learning that Disney had assisted the assailant crew member in leaving the jurisdiction and avoiding prosecution, Attorney General Archer said he was "sickened." He vowed to prosecute crimes on cruise ships which are all too often not timely reported to the local law enforcement or are ignored by the FBI.

According to WKMG, which again aired an informative report on this disturbing case, Archer said that "at least two crimes" may have occurred on the Disney Dream while in Brevard County's waters: "false imprisonment, as the suspect cornered the child in the elevator, which he prevented from moving by blocking the door as he appeared to molest her; and lewd or lascivious molestation on a child under 12, a felony that could have produced a life sentence."

Archer characterized the Disney molestation case as "serious" and promised vigorous prosecutions of crimes like this in order to protect other families who may cruise in the future. The local police chief also promised a more active role in investigating allegations of cruise ship crimes and completing reports.

When asked to respond to Disney's excuse that the child's grandmother allegedly said she did not want to pursue a criminal prosecution in the Bahamas, Attorney General Archer said: "the decision to prosecute that serious a crime in Florida rests with a prosecutor, not a grandmother."

AG Archer believes it is a cover up, and names 2 specific SERIOUS FELONIES, that can be seen ON VIDEOTAPE.
The SAME VIDEOTAPE viewed by Disney security "professionals" the day of occurrence. Seriously, Did they somehow watch this videotape and miss the crime?!! They viewed this videotape before leaving port and did NOTHING about a SEX CRIME against a CHILD... then sent the perp back to India.

How convenient!

 

[Magic Fanatic]

Great to here there is now on official investigation into this. Hopefully the will be more clarity to follow.