Crew Members Removed From Two Cruise Ships Sailing the Great Lakes

Several international crew members working aboard two ships operated by Victory Cruise Lines were recently removed from the vessels by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents.

As many as 13 crew from the cruise line’s Victory I and Victory II, both small ships with a capacity for 180 guests, were detained and apparently deported by CBP officials during port calls at US destinations. 

The ships are currently sailing summer season Great Lakes voyages between Chicago and Toronto. The removal of the crew members occurred during port calls to Detroit and perhaps in another port call as well.

CBP has not confirmed any arrests or detainment of cruise ship crew members. The action apparently took place on July 9 and 11, 2025, according to the trade publication Travel Weekly.

“We are actively cooperating with federal authorities to clarify the circumstances, and my priority is always our crew and the experience for our guests,” John Waggoner, chairman of Victory Cruise Lines, told the media outlet.

The reasons behind the crew members’ removal are unclear but the arrests were not the work of the controversial US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, aka ICE. However, both ICE and CBP are part of the US Department of Homeland Security.

According to various unconfirmed reports, the crew members were handcuffed and removed from the two ships. Some reports indicate that at least one crew member was charged with possession of child pornography.

In fact, CBP posted on its Facebook page that nine cruise ship crew members were removed from a cruise ship in Detroit for alleged possession of child pornography, but those arrests happened on June 20, 2025, not in July 2025, adding another puzzling aspect to the report.

The removal of a cruise line’s foreign crew members at any US port would throw a wrench into cruise ship operations. Foreign workers typically obtain required documents and authority, such as a C1/D Seaman Visa, to work on cruise ships across the globe.

It would be highly problematic for a cruise line to find additional crew members to replace those arrested during a port call.

The removal and presumed deportation of the Victory Cruise Line employees has rattled international crew members across the industry, with fears rising that immigration sweeps could impact cruising on a widespread basis, although there is no indication that is happening now.

There have also been reports that federal agents have carried out similar removals of foreign staff working on other vessels operating in the Great Lakes, but these are unconfirmed.

Crew Member Arrests Don’t Happen Too Often

It is uncommon for cruise ship crew members to be arrested but it does happen from time to time. One recent case that sparked headlines was the case of the male stateroom attendant aboard Royal Caribbean International’s Symphony of the Seas who was charged with hiding cameras inside guest cabins.

In that case, Arvin Joseph Mirasol, 34, a Filipino national, was arrested in Fort Lauderdale when Symphony of the Seas returned from an 8-night Southern Caribbean sailing in March 2024.

Mirasol had placed hidden cameras in a number of staterooms and hid under the beds in staterooms while guests were reportedly in the shower. In August 2024, he pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison.

In another case, a crew member working onboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Encore was arrested in May 2024 after allegedly attacking a ship’s security guard and a member of the medical staff.

Donna Tunney

Donna Tunney is a travel news/feature writer and editor with 20-plus years covering cruise news, luxury travel, and Europe and UK destinations. A former staffer at Travel Weekly and at the USAToday Network, she also was a luxury travel columnist at Travel Market Report, and a cruise columnist at Sherman's Travel.