Cruise Ship Lawyers Blog
Two men have been accused in the rape of a 14-year-old boy in a sauna aboard a Royal Caribbean ship headed for PortMiami.
The men, Ricardo Daniel Mondragon Leal, 37, and Jose Juan Prudencio Diaz, 36, were charged on Friday, March 21.
Mondragon faces charges of sexual battery on a minor, lewd and lascivious molestation on a child aged 12 to 16 years old, lewd and lascivious exhibition on a child under 16 years old by a person over 18 years old.
Prudencio Diaz faces charges of lewd and lascivious molestation on a child aged 12 to 16 years old, lewd and lascivious exhibition on a child under 16 years old by a person over 18 years old, and one charge for not informing another person in a “sexual act” of his HIV status, according to reporting from The Miami Herald.
Neither man has been granted bond as of Friday and both were being held at the Miami-Dade Metro West Detention Center.
The boy was in the sauna Thursday, March 20, on Royal Caribbean’s Independence of the Seas when the two men allegedly sexually abused him, according to media.
In a statement to reporters, officials with Royal Caribbean said they immediately reported the incident to law enforcement, but refused to further comment as it is an ongoing police investigation.
Both men have holds for Immigration and Customs Enforcement placed on them.
Leesfield & Partners
For 48 years, Leesfield & Partners attorneys have represented victims and survivors of sexual assaults. Physical attacks and gun violence in Florida. Our attorneys take these cases very seriously and handle each case with the care, respect and compassion they deserve. Tragically, cases of sexual assaults on minors happen one in nine girls and one in 20 boys under 18 years old in the United States, according to data from the Rape, Abuse and Incest national Network (RAINN).
The effects of child sexual abuse can infiltrate every aspect of a victim or survivor’s life for years after the abuse has ended, making them more likely to struggle with mental health. Victims and survivors are four times more likely to abuse drugs and experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than those who have not experience sexual abuse. Additionally, they are about three times more likely to experience depression. Every parent teaches their child about “stranger danger” but, shockingly, 93% of perpetrators of child sexual abuse are often related to or know the victim. These perpetrators often hide in plain sight and only have access to the child because they are in a position of trust. They can include anyone from family members, teachers, coaches, tutors, neighbors and friends.
As a result, of decades of aggressively pursuing justice on behalf of victims and survivors, Leesfield & Partners’ Founder and Managing Partner, Ira Leesfield, decided he needed to make a bigger impact. Through his charitable organization, The Leesfield Family Foundation, Mr. Leesfield regularly contributes to non-profits and other groups dedicated to education and prevention of child sexual abuse. Additionally, these organizations also provide essentials like mental health services, counseling and shelter for victims and survivors of sexual abuse.
Recently, Mr. Leesfield represented four adults who were sexually abused as children by a clergyman at their parochial elementary and middle schools. Though now adults, these four individuals have been deeply affected by the abuse they suffered as children at the hands of someone meant to protect and guide them.
A confidential settlement was obtained on behalf of our clients.
Representing Victims and Survivors
Previously, Partner Justin B. Shapiro secured a $16 million settlement on behalf of a couple who were staying at a Florida hotel when they were savagely beaten, and the wife was raped and sexually assaulted by a man who was not a guest at the hotel. The property had no required keycard access on elevators that would have prevented the man from traveling up to the couple’s floor. Additionally, neither security not hotel employees stopped or questioned the man when he entered the property.
The hotel had been previously advised by police and a private security company to hire armed guards due to its previous history of violence. To save money, however, hotel officials did not heed this warning and took no action to improve safety measures to protect its guests or employees. Making matters worse, the attack was witnessed by both employees and the security that the hotel already had. Neither party intervened to try and stop the violent assault.
Leesfield & Partners recovered $8.6 million against a prestigious overnight camp in Florida after they failed to notice the signs of one of their counselors who sexually abused a child in their care.
A well-respected Florida high school was forced to pay multi-million-dollar reparations to numerous students represented by Leesfield & Partners. These reparations were made following the serial sexual abuse our clients suffered at the hands of their teacher.
In a cruise ship sexual assault case, the firm obtained over $1.5 million for a woman who was raped in her private cabin. The attacker in this case was a cruise employee who abused his keycard access, granting him entry into various cabins, to corner our client and assault her.
The firm represented a store clerk who worked at an outlet mall who was sexually assaulted while on the job. This horrific incident happened in the store in the middle of the day. After a careful investigation, our attorneys discovered that it was the absence of security at the mall that contributed to this crime.
Leesfield & Partners obtained over $1.1 million for the client in this case.
In a similar case in which a Key West hotel maid was raped on the job by a man who was not a guest at the hotel, our firm obtained a $1 million recovery.
An unaccompanied minor was represented by Leesfield & Partners after she was sexually abused by a passenger on an airline. The child was meant to be under the supervision of flight attendants who failed to properly watch over and protect the child.
A confidential settlement was reached with the airline.
In a child sex abuse case involving a negligent youth center, Leesfield & Partners obtained a $650,000 result for our minor client.
Bernardo Pimentel II, a Trial Lawyer at the firm, is handling an ongoing case involving video voyeurism aboard a cruise ship. A cruise employee with access to passengers’ private cabins planted hidden cameras in their bathrooms to film them without their consent. Many of the victims in this case were minors and this employee was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for the crime.
Our client, who was one of the individuals that was filmed, remains traumatized following the harrowing ordeal.
If you or a loved one was injured on a cruise ship, don’t wait. Call a Leesfield & Partners Attorney today at 800-836-6400 or 305-854-4900 to see if you might be eligible for compensation.
If you or someone you know has been affected by sexual assault or rape, help can be found by calling the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673.
