Captain of "missing honeymooner" George Smith's cruise ship speaks
Michael Lachtaridis, the captain of Brilliance of the Seas in July when honeymooner George Smith apparently went overboard, spoke publicly for the first time today, with Dan Abrams of MSNBC's The Abrams Report. Also today, Royal Caribbean released what they call a factual chronology of the events, exceedingly detailed.
Amid mysterious circumstances and a variety of possibilities ranging from "tragic accident" to "extremely foul play," Captain Lachtaridis believes the more likely scenario is that George Smith went overboard accidentally, and asserted that he, his crew, and Royal Caribbean did everything possible to facilitate the investigation and help spouse Jennifer Hagel Smith.
Disagreeing on Abrams' show were the attorneys for Smith's family, and for his wife, Jennifer Hagel Smith, who both did their best to paint a picture of conspiracy and/or incompetence on the part of Royal Caribbean. There is a lawsuit from the family promised against Royal Caribbean.
Admitting that I harbor a general suspicion of most attorneys, the idea that Royal Caribbean bears responsibility for whatever tragedy befell George Smith is ludicrous. The man almost certainly went overboard from his own stateroom, either through accident or foul play, but in either event Royal Caribbean didn't cause it to happen, nor do the facts support a charge that Royal Caribbean could reasonably have prevented the tragedy. Without a security guard or camera inside each stateroom, there's no way to know for certain what played out there.
But did the cruise line try to hinder the investigation, as the attorneys charged? Turkish authorities had primary jurisdiction, since the ship was docked there, and were the immediate primary investigators. And even the opposing lawyers on Abrams' show admitted that the FBI had been called by Royal Caribbean about a possible crime by 10:30 am local time, less than two hours after the cruise line was first notified that someone may have gone overboard. Plus, a vacationing FBI agent in Turkey lent immediate assistance.
Another new detail is that the young men who were partying with the honeymooners, and were possibly the last people seen with George Smith, were warned about disruptive behavior by Royal Caribbean, and three days after Smith's disappearance were accused of an unrelated rape and put off the ship. Italian authorities concluded there was not enough evidence to charge them, however.
The FBI is still actively investigating these events, and hopefully will be able to reach a firm conclusion.
PREVIOUSLY: August 19, 2005, Missing Mediterranean honeymooner still a mystery
TODAY: January 5, 2006, Royal Caribbean "Factual Chronology of George Smith's Disappearance"
TODAY: January 5, 2006, Abrams Report transcript
UPDATE: January 6, 2006, the Associated Press reports that Jennifer Hagel Smith and George Smith were arguing in a bar earlier the night he disappeared, due to George believing Jennifer was flirting with another passenger. Jennifer kicked George "hard" in the groin, and left.
Amid mysterious circumstances and a variety of possibilities ranging from "tragic accident" to "extremely foul play," Captain Lachtaridis believes the more likely scenario is that George Smith went overboard accidentally, and asserted that he, his crew, and Royal Caribbean did everything possible to facilitate the investigation and help spouse Jennifer Hagel Smith.
Disagreeing on Abrams' show were the attorneys for Smith's family, and for his wife, Jennifer Hagel Smith, who both did their best to paint a picture of conspiracy and/or incompetence on the part of Royal Caribbean. There is a lawsuit from the family promised against Royal Caribbean.
Admitting that I harbor a general suspicion of most attorneys, the idea that Royal Caribbean bears responsibility for whatever tragedy befell George Smith is ludicrous. The man almost certainly went overboard from his own stateroom, either through accident or foul play, but in either event Royal Caribbean didn't cause it to happen, nor do the facts support a charge that Royal Caribbean could reasonably have prevented the tragedy. Without a security guard or camera inside each stateroom, there's no way to know for certain what played out there.
But did the cruise line try to hinder the investigation, as the attorneys charged? Turkish authorities had primary jurisdiction, since the ship was docked there, and were the immediate primary investigators. And even the opposing lawyers on Abrams' show admitted that the FBI had been called by Royal Caribbean about a possible crime by 10:30 am local time, less than two hours after the cruise line was first notified that someone may have gone overboard. Plus, a vacationing FBI agent in Turkey lent immediate assistance.
Another new detail is that the young men who were partying with the honeymooners, and were possibly the last people seen with George Smith, were warned about disruptive behavior by Royal Caribbean, and three days after Smith's disappearance were accused of an unrelated rape and put off the ship. Italian authorities concluded there was not enough evidence to charge them, however.
The FBI is still actively investigating these events, and hopefully will be able to reach a firm conclusion.
PREVIOUSLY: August 19, 2005, Missing Mediterranean honeymooner still a mystery
TODAY: January 5, 2006, Royal Caribbean "Factual Chronology of George Smith's Disappearance"
TODAY: January 5, 2006, Abrams Report transcript
UPDATE: January 6, 2006, the Associated Press reports that Jennifer Hagel Smith and George Smith were arguing in a bar earlier the night he disappeared, due to George believing Jennifer was flirting with another passenger. Jennifer kicked George "hard" in the groin, and left.
2 Comments:
Due to this tragedy that happended on this cruise ship, I will never go on a cruise with this company and I'll make sure that everyone I come in contact with won't either!!!! The staff of the cruise should all be facing charges for covering up a murder and making outragious stories to try and cover their butts!!!
Katie, I'm sorry you feel that way. However, I disagree with your conclusion. This was a tragic situation, yes, but the cruise line and its staff reacted properly to facilitate the investigation--promptly notifying the FBI and other authorities and cooperating fully. Whether George Smith went missing due to an accident or due to foul play, neither the tragedy itself nor the continuing mystery are the cruise line's fault. And in fact, statistically speaking, vacationers are MUCH safer on cruise ships than in most US cities.
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