2 Cruise Line Employees Accused of Rape

Two crew members of Carnival Cruise Lines were charged in federal court Monday with sexual assault, stemming from accusations that they raped or attacked two women while the ship Elation was anchored off Puerto Vallarta.

In a criminal complaint, prosecutors alleged that Desmond Abraham and Julio Cesar Delgado each committed one count of engaging in a sexual act with someone who was too intoxicated or otherwise incapacitated to rebuff their advances.

According to an FBI affidavit, Abraham and Delgado took turns forcing themselves on each of the victims after the women had spent the afternoon drinking in the resort town and returned to one of their rooms.

The two men were expected to enter pleas at an arraignment May 30.

In the meantime, Abraham and Delgado were being held without bail, after prosecutors contended that they were a flight risk.

Delgado is from Nicaragua and Abraham, 28, is from the island of Dominica in the West Indies. Delgado was a purser’s bellman and Abraham cleaned cabins, officials said.

The two men were taken into custody by FBI agents Sunday, after the huge ocean liner docked in port in San Pedro at the end of a seven-day cruise to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan and Cabo San Lucas. The alleged assaults occurred May 3.

According to an affidavit filed by FBI Special Agent George Olivo, the defendants and their alleged victims had conflicting accounts.

The women said that Abraham and Delgado attacked them after following them into a darkened cabin room. Both said they physically resisted and told the men to stop.

But Abraham and Delgado told FBI agents and a ship’s captain that the women had kissed them, and never tried to stop them from engaging in sexual acts or touching.

Jennifer de la Cruz, a spokeswoman for Carnival, said the cruise line--the world’s largest--notified the authorities of the incident and has “cooperated fully with the FBI in their investigation.”

De la Cruz also said sexual assaults and other crimes are “extremely rare” on Carnival cruise ships, especially given “how many millions of passengers the cruise lines carry.”

Abraham and Delgado each face up to 20 years in prison if convicted of the charges, said Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles.