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A man who jumped off a Royal Caribbean cruise ship near the Port of San Juan over the weekend did so allegedly to avoid having to pay a $16,710 gambling debt to the cruise line.
Jey Gonzalez-Diaz has been charged with a federal crime, authorities said.
Gonzalez-Diaz embarked on the Rhapsody of the Seas at the Port of San Juan on Aug. 31, according to a criminal complaint filed Sunday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico.
The cruise ship returned from Barbados on Sunday — when Gonzalez-Diaz jumped into the water as the ship disembarked around 9:15 a.m. local time, during U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspection, the criminal complaint said. Gonzalez-Diaz was then brought to shore by someone passing by on a jet ski, investigators said. The moment was captured on surveillance video.
Diaz was later found carrying $14,600 in cash, two phones and five IDs.
It has since been revealed that González-Díaz apparently booked the cruise using the name “Jeremy Diaz.” That identity belongs to Jeremy Omar González Díaz, who was reportedly incarcerated in Puerto Rico’s Metropolitan Detention Center—and whom Jey claimed was his brother.
The cruise ship casino, named Casino Royale, is centrally situated on Deck 5. It can accommodate up to 282 guests and features a vibrant layout of slot machines and gaming tables.
Cruise ships do not typically allow passengers to play at casinos for cash. Instead, passengers use their SeaPass card (onboard account) to get casino chips or play slot machines. Those charges are then billed to the guest’s stateroom account, which is settled at the end of the cruise.
In this situation, González-Díaz reportedly was charged $16,710 in casino play and expected to pay that balance at the time of disembarking.
- Jagajeet Chiba, Gambling911.com
