Twenty-six Filipino seafarers were arrested by American authorities and deported after being implicated in a child pornography investigation.
The Los Angeles Times reported said that 26 cruise ship crew members from the Philippines were found to have either received, sent, possessed, or transported child pornography.
The development came after officers with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) boarded eight cruise ships, including a Disney Cruise Line vessel, between April 23 and 27 and interviewed workers as part of an investigation.
The suspects were not identified, but the majority were from the Philippines. One was from Portugal, while another was from Indonesia.
A spokesperson for Disney Cruise Line said that while most of those involved were not from its cruise line, it has already terminated the employment of its workers involved in the child pornography case.
The CBP has also canceled all of their visas and deported them to their countries of citizenship.
The Philippine Consulate General in Los Angeles also confirmed the arrests and deportation of the Pinoy seafarers, saying they were “eligible to receive assistance from the DMW and other concerned government agencies” upon their arrival.
The arrests were made on cruise ships docked in San Diego, California.
Meanwhile, the news reached a Reddit community for Filipinos, where some users shared their reactions to the development.
Disney cruise ship staffers among 28 arrested in child porn sting. 26 suspected crew members from the Philippines.
by
u/BossBinangkal in
Philippines
“Pangalanan na dapat ‘yan,” a Redditor commented.
“Bakit ‘pag may mga crimes sa ibang bansa ang mga Pinoy, mostly, it’s about child porn [or] grooming? It’s really concerning. It’s the result of our culture of grooming and minimizing sexual offenses,” another wrote.
“Bro, bawal na bawal ‘yung mga ganyan sa barko. ‘Yung tropa kong seaman, ‘pag sasampa, matic [automatic] ‘yung isang phone niya na sobrang clean dinadala niya. Sobrang delikado daw doon, kahit mga link, yari ka,” a different Reddit user commented.
“Ano kaya malupit na explanation nila sa family nila bakit sila nawalan trabaho?” another Redditor asked.
A significant number of Filipinos are employed on cruise ships, often cited for their English proficiency, hospitality skills, strong work ethic and relatively higher pay compared to similar jobs in the Philippines.
