A Celebrity Cruises employee has been arrested in connection with the alleged rape of a female British passenger on one of the line’s ships, according to reports.
The alleged incident took place on Friday on board the 2,850-passenger Celebrity Equinox, and the unnamed male employee was in custody in Messina, Sicily pending an investigation.
Messina is one of the ports on the ship’s current, 11-night Mediterranean cruise from Civitavecchia, the port of Rome.
The 27-year-old woman is said to have met the Celebrity employee in a bar of the ship and spent several hours drinking with him before saying she was tired and heading back to her cabin, the Daily Mail reported.
The employee reportedly followed her back to the cabin, pushed her inside and attacked her.
Celebrity Cruises said it immediately reported the alleged incident to the local authorities and the FBI.
The man in question was an employee of the cruise line’s shore-side offices who was conducting business onboard, the line told USAToday.
A spokesman for the cruise line said: “We are aware of the incident involving a British guest on one of our ships and she has opted to continue her cruise. We are liaising with the relevant authorities.”
Jacobs Media is honoured to be the recipient of the 2020 Queen's Award for Enterprise.
The highest official awards for UK businesses since being established by royal warrant in 1965. Read more.