In a terrifying account at CNN, more details have emerged in the passenger attack aboard the Holland America cruise ship, MS Nieuw Amsterdam. The attack was apparently perpetrated by a crew member.
Questions remain for passengers cruising on all vessels. Cruise ships can be dangerous places – a thought that is likely unusual for the average passenger who would assume that all cruises are like the commercials and brochures pitch them – carefree, fun, enjoyable and safe.
The reality is that danger and risk of injury exist as they would anyplace. And unfortunately, cruise ships come with their own set of issue – physical attacks, slip and fall injuries, Norovirus breakouts and more.
Read the entire article at CNN here (part of the story is found below).
The fight started because of an alleged slight — and ended with a crew member being accused of attempted murder.
Ketut Pujayasa, a 28-year-old room service attendant with Holland America’s ms Nieuw Amsterdam, physically and sexually assaulted a female passenger while in international waters, according to a criminal complaint in which authorities say he confessed.
The 31-year-old woman, a U.S. citizen, was not identified in the complaint filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
Pujayasa told authorities he delivered breakfast to the woman’s room. He knocked three times before the passenger acknowledged him.
Outside the room, Pujayasa heard a female voice shout, “Wait a minute, son of a bitch!” according to the complaint. She later opened the door, and he left the food.
Pujayasa did not report the incident to a manager, but told authorities he found the woman’s comment offensive. He returned to her room later. No one answered, and he left.
That same evening, he looked for the woman on a deck, “in order to punch her in the face for insulting him that morning,” the complaint read. He left after realizing the location was too crowded.
That night, Pujayasa returned to the passenger’s room and used his master key to enter.
He is accused of choking and punching the woman with whatever was available — a laptop, a curling iron. She fought back with a cork screw.
At one point, the fight moved onto a balcony, where Pujayasa tried to push the woman overboard, the complaint read.
She eventually was able to break free and ran from her room. Another passenger rendered aid.
Due to the severity of her injuries, the woman was transported via air ambulance to a hospital in Florida after the ship docked the next morning. Her condition was not immediately clear.
According to the complaint, Pujayasa returned to his room after the attack and told his roommate to contact ship security because he had killed a passenger. He was placed under guard on the ship.
While millions of passengers each year cruise safely and enjoy the cruise, as attorneys dealing with injured passengers, we hear of numerous accidents and injuries that leave passengers hurt, confused and searching for help.
Fortunately, incident like the attack on the Holland America cruise ship are relatively infrequent (though more frequent than most cruisers would ever imagine).
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