What Actually Happens When A Crime Is Committed On A Cruise Ship?

Fans of legendary detective writer Agathie Christie might be tickled pink envisioning some dastardly criminal plot happening aboard a passenger vehicle. But far from the interpersonal spiderweb of backstabbings and literal stabbings (and shootings) that characterize novels like "Death on the Nile," real crimes aboard real cruise ships require real solutions and real investigations. And no, we don't mean crimes like, "Hey, that dude just sat in my pool chair!". To handle real crimes and ne'er-do-wells, cruise lines have security procedures and personnel in place. 

But first: Crimes aboard cruise ships are rare. An FBI report from Q1, 2025 (meaning related to U.S. cruises, only) lays out precisely what types of crimes happened aboard major cruise lines. This includes Carnival Cruise Line, Disney Cruise Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Princess Cruise Line, Virgin Voyages, Celebrity Cruises, MSC, and Royal Caribbean. The FBI found zero murders, suspicious deaths, kidnappings, or vessel sabotage. Sorry, Agatha Christie fans. They did, however, find 10 instances of sexual assault (without rape), 23 instances of sexual assault (with rape), seven instances of theft (over $10,000), seven assaults, and one missing U.S. national.

This is why cruises have their own security personnel. If a crime happens aboard a vessel on the ocean, a suspect can't exactly be questioned by police or shipped to jail. They've got to be kept on the vessel until reaching port. If a crime is severe, then a captain might confine a suspect to the ship's brig. Once at port, the suspect gets handed over to the proper authorities. "Proper authorities" are defined by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which states that coastal territory extends to 12 nautical miles away from a country's shore. Prosecution falls to this country, otherwise to the next port.

While a general, festive cruise atmosphere might keep crime low, humans are still humans and can commit the same acts no matter where, when, or what, given the right conditions and predispositions. After all, the TSA has caught folks trying to smuggle guns on planes in peanut butter (and other absurd methods). So, rather than discard any notions of personal safety while lounging about on a deck or digging into a buffet of questionable quality, passengers aboard cruise ships should employ the same common-sense safety measures that they would anywhere on Earth.

If you're out and about in a European city, let's say, wearing flashy clothes might make you a target for pickpockets. And, certain neighborhoods like Las Ramblas in Barcelona are favorites for pickpockets, regardless. While dressing for cruises can be tricky, guests can at least minimize their likelihood of being targeted for theft by not trying to look like a Hollywood celebrity on the red carpet. And like always, don't leave your phone sticking out of your pocket, your back turned to a crowd, your purse out of sight, your wallet on the table, and so forth.

Then there are the more serious crimes that occur on board cruises, like those in the FBI's Q1 2025 report. Regarding these, we advise guests to go easy on the alcohol and not trust or go alone into the recesses of the ship with anyone if they don't know them. That's a serious statement, and goes a long way to ensure personal safety, much like not walking down an unknown alleyway in a city at night, alone and inebriated. And if things are getting heated between you and a fellow passenger despite all the fun? Diffuse and walk away rather than escalate.