Boston authorities arrest 11 cruise ship crewmembers for child exploitation offenses

Federal authorities arrested 11 foreign crewmembers at the Port of Boston during a multi-agency initiative known as ‘Operation Tidal Wave’. The operation, conducted between August 14 and August 16, targeted individuals involved in the possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and child sexual exploitation material (CSEM).

The arrests took place aboard two cruise ships: Holland America’s Volendam and Norwegian Cruise Line’s Breakaway. The suspects, identified as nine citizens of the Philippines, one from Indonesia, and one from Nicaragua, were subjected to searches of their living quarters and electronic devices.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) coordinated the effort. All 11 individuals have been processed for removal from the United States under immigration laws regarding crimes involving moral turpitude and are scheduled for deportation.

In a separate incident at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, CBP officers seized approximately 847 pounds of khat, a stimulant drug, from two New York men arriving on a flight from London. The substance, which has an estimated street value of $100,000, was found concealed in 12 soft-sided suitcases.