A jury issued its verdict Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida finding Carnival liable for damages against the plaintiff, referred to as Jane Doe, for false imprisonment and sexual assault by crew member Fredy Anggara. , in December 2018.
The jury separately found that Carnival was not negligent and that the former crew member did not intentionally cause Doe emotional distress.
The plaintiff filed a complaint against Carnival Cruise Line in November 2019, nearly a year after the incident occurred. Anggara is not a defendant in the lawsuit.
At the time of the sexual assault, the plaintiff was 21 years old and traveling with her friend and her friend’s family, according to the complaint.
The incident occurred on the last night of the cruise, in the early morning hours of December 2, 2018, according to court documents. After having dinner with her friend and two other passengers, the plaintiff became very intoxicated, according to the plaintiff’s attorney, Daniel Courtney.
The plaintiff had also slipped and hit her head on the ship’s pool deck, court documents show.
Soon after, the plaintiff met Anggara, who was 27 at the time, and claims she ended up in a closet with him where the sexual assault took place, court documents show.
“Doe does not remember going in or out of the closet, but Mr. Anggara was holding his hand when they went in. Doe believed that Mr. Anggara kept the closet door closed,” court documents state.
Carnival Cruise Line says the incident between the plaintiff and Anggara was consensual, according to a statement released Tuesday, and plans to appeal the court’s decision.
“The crew member admitted to having a consensual sexual encounter with the guest, which is consistent with an investigation by the FBI,” the statement said.
After the incident, FBI agents came aboard the ship and questioned the plaintiff, a complaint states. Plaintiff then gave a statement while being videotaped by Carnival.
CNN has contacted the FBI and filed a FOIA request regarding its investigation into the incident.
Before trial, the court found that Doe had proven her false imprisonment claim.
In an opinion, the court ruled: “There is no evidence upon which the jury could rely to refute Doe’s undisputed recollection that at one point in the closet Mr. Anggara did not let her out of the closet after she asked to do so . time period, plaintiff’s claim of false imprisonment is established as a matter of law.”
Anggara was terminated immediately after the incident occurred, in accordance with Carnival’s zero-tolerance policy on crew fraternization with guests, Carnival said in a statement.
After the incident, Anggara told Carnival in a written statement that the plaintiff chose to go inside a closet with Anggara and have sex, according to court records.
Courtney, the plaintiff’s attorney, says his client is a victim of sexual assault.
“I am very grateful that my client was able to experience a good, orderly and fair trial, despite Carnival’s best efforts to poison the jury with inappropriate comments throughout the process,” Courtney said in a statement Wednesday. . “We fully expect Carnival to appeal as they have never done the right thing when it comes to my brave customer.”
Courtney also told CNN that Anggara was not arrested after the incident and it is unclear where he is currently located.
CNN was unable to reach Anggara.
CNN’s Amanda Jackson contributed to this report.
