Two cruise ships that had fled, and whose owner is facing legal proceedings for debts in the United States, were captured in the Bahamas, as published this Saturday by various media specialized in the cruise industry.
These are the Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity vessels, owned by the company Crystal Cruises, in turn owned by the firm Genting Hong Kong, which faces a complaint in Miami, Florida, for a fuel debt of 3.4 million dollars.
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The complaint was filed by the company Peninsula Petroleum Far East Pte. Ltd, according to the Miami Herald newspaper.
In late January, a Miami judge issued an arrest warrant for the Crystal Symphony, which has not docked in the United States since then.
The boat was supposed to dock with passengers on January 22, in Miami, but when the arrest warrant was released, it was diverted to the Bahamas to avoid confiscation.
The Crystal Symphony (front) and Crystal Serenity ships in a 2016 image. Both cruise ships are detained in the Bahamas, according to reports from specialized sites. Neil Roberts / AP
The detention of the ships was initially reported on the Cruise Law News site by cruise ship attorney Jim Walker.
According to Walker, both vessels docked in Freeport, Bahamas, and had no passengers.
His crew has no impediment to move.
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The spokesperson for the company Crystal Cruises told the Miami Herald in an email that they could not comment on the matter, as it is a judicial matter that is being processed in court.
"Crystal Serenity and Crystal Symphony's voyages ended last month and there are no passengers on board ... crew members have been paid their January salaries and we are meeting and exceeding all contractual obligations," he wrote, according to the newspaper report.
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According to Walker's report, the Crystal Serenity had been sailing in international waters, off the coast of Florida, after disembarking its passengers at a port in Bimini, a group of islands 55 miles from Miami.
Previously, the vessel had been denied port in Aruba, Walker reported.
The company Genting Hong Kong, the ultimate owner of the vessels, had announced in January that it would not be able to pay its debts.
Its subsidiary, Crystal Cruises, reported that it would suspend operations until April, according to the Miami Herald.
