A brand new cruise ship employee was arrested after trying to deploy a lifeboat and going on a stabbing spree instead of doing his job.
Cruise ship employee goes on savage stabbing spree
According to a a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Alaska, a South African man was taken into custody by the FBI after allegedly attacking multiple people on a cruise as it was leaving Juneau, Alaska.
35-year-old Ntando Sogoni was working when he attempted to “deploy a lifeboat” during his first shift as part of the ship’s crew, hours after he boarded the vessel in Seattle.
Fellow employees escorted Sogoni to the ship’s healthcare facility to get a medical assessment. While Sogoni was laid up in sickbay, he “became irrational and attempted to leave.”
During the struggle, he allegedly assaulted a security officer and a nurse, then barged into another room where an American woman was being treated for an undisclosed reason.
“He grabbed a pair of scissors and stabbed the woman multiple times in the arm, hand and face,” the press release stated.
He also stabbed two security guards who pulled him off the woman. One of the guards was stabbed in the head, while the other was knifed in the back and shoulders.
The violent stabbing happened just before 2 a.m. on Monday, while the cruise ship was navigating waters west of Vancouver Island, approximately 16.5 miles from shore.
Sogoni was arrested by security guard then confined within the vessel’s detention area until they could reach the mainland.
The ship “immediately” radioed in to law enforcement agencies, who took the suspect into custody when they docked in Juneau.
Sogoni now faces charges of “assault with a dangerous weapon within maritime and territorial jurisdiction in violation of 18 U.S.C. §113(a).”
A conviction could land him up to a decade in prison and impose a $250,000 fine per charge, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.
The driving force behind Sogoni’s alleged violent stabbing spree on the cruise ship remains a mystery.
The FBI’s Anchorage Field Office, its Juneau Resident Agency, along with the Coast Guard Investigative Service are working together to investigate.
According to a spokesperson from Norwegian, “The ship’s security team escorted the crew member to the medical center for evaluation and assessment, where he became violent without provocation, attacking two other crew members and a guest.”
“The security team quickly detained him, and the onboard medical staff treated those involved for non-life-threatening injuries,” the cruise line reported.
“We condemn violent behavior of this nature and are committed to the safety and security of all crew members and guests on our ships,” added the spokesperson. “We commend the onboard security team for their brave actions.”
Casino patron murdered in stabbing ambush
Earlier in April, a 29-year-old man fell victim to a different stabbing attack in a Washington casino.
While standing at a craps table at the Muckleshoot Casino, Brandon Larson was approached from behind and had his neck slashed with a boxcutter held by Ricky Fuentes. The young man was pronounced dead on the scene.
A distress call about the attack was received by Auburn authorities early morning on April 21.
Described as a “completely random act” by the police, spokesperson Kolby Crossley noted that the attack was “a scary and terrible situation that occurred and this person had no idea what was going to happen to them.”
The perpetrator seemingly made no attempt to hide his savage actions.
“It happened at the casino on the casino floor,” Crossley told Fox13. “There were a lot of people around. There were a lot of cameras,” he noted.
The suspect was apprehended at the scene “without incident,” but Auburn police were initially baffled by the motive, as the murderer and victim had no prior contact.
“We’re going to figure out why and how and what drove this person to act so heinously,” Crossley confidently stated at the time.
Fuentes, who has a lengthy rap sheet for assault, reckless driving, and possession of dangerous weapons, eventually admitted to police that he went to the casino with the intent of murdering an associate.
When he couldn’t find the person, he sought out someone else to kill and saw Larson “being a bully” at the craps table.
“The assailant was taken into custody without incident and is now housed in King County Jail,” a press release said about the Fuentes.
He is pleaded guilty on Wednesday to first degree murder, but remains in custody on a $5 million bail.
