Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers from the New Orleans Field Office, along with Task Force officers apprehended a crew member who escaped from a Carnival cruise ship more than seven years ago and processed him for removal .
A 36-year-old Indonesian national had originally entered the US on a non-immigrant visa and was a crew member aboard the Carnival Cruise Fantasy. He had overstayed his visa, which required him to leave the country in 2015.
CBP officers and Task Force officers apprehended the man without incident as he left his residence in Central Carrolton on his way to his job at a nearby ramen restaurant. He was transported to Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans, Louisiana for immigration processing. The cruise line provided a security escort to fly him to Houston and made sure he boarded his connecting flight to his native Indonesia.
“The Gulf Coast region benefits greatly from the continued tourism that the cruise industry brings. However, the industry’s success is intertwined with compliance with the myriad of health, safety, maritime and immigration laws that CBP enforces,” said Steven Stavinoha, Director of Field Operations for the New Orleans Field Office. “This subject violated boundaries. of his visa and our officers did an outstanding job of enforcing the consequences of his choices. This arrest demonstrates the importance of port security and the long and patient arm of the law.”
In fiscal year 2022, 17 crew members were estimated to have escaped from the New Orleans area, of which approximately 7 were captured. In 2019 there were 12 fugitives, in 2020 there were 9, in 2021 there were 16.
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