The Tribune

By SANCHESKA BROWN Tribune Staff Reporter sbrown@tribunemedia.net FEDERAL agents are assisting Bahamian police with their investigations into the alleged suicide of a British man on a cruise ship last Friday. Police say the incident occurred around 7.10am on Allure of the Seas, a Bahamian-registered cruise ship, one mile off the coast of Cozumel, Mexico. This is the third alleged cruise ship suicide police are investigating this year. Superintendent Paul Rolle, Head of the Central Detective Unit, along with officers from the Broward County Sheriff's Office and Customs and Border Protection are on the vessel, docked in Fort Lauderdale. Supt Rolle said police are still in the initial stages of their investigations. "We do not have much information we can share with the public at this point. All we know is a British man is dead and it may or may not have been suicide. We are still conducting our on scene investigations and interviewing eyewitness. We are being assisted by other law enforcement agencies and expect to wrap up our investigations shortly. At that time, I will provide an update," he said. A statement from Royal Caribbean International said the 30-year-old reportedly fell from the balcony of his stateroom on Deck 11 of Allure of the Seas - the world's largest cruise ship. "The ship made multiple public announcements and began a complete search of the ship, in efforts to locate the guest. When the guest did not respond to the pages and was not found onboard, the captain alerted the local authorities of the situation," the statement read. "A review of the ship's closed-circuit camera footage observed the British guest going over the balcony railing in his stateroom on deck 11. The location of the ship at the time the guest went overboard was marked on the ship's Global Positioning System (GPS) and the US and Mexican Coast Guard were alerted. Our Care Team is providing support to the guest's family and our thoughts and prayers are with them." The man was among more than 4,500 passengers on board Allure of the Seas as it sailed from Florida to Cancun on a gay and lesbian-themed seven-day cruise. Last month, a 26-year-old male cruise ship passenger from South Carolina reportedly committed suicide on board the Fantasy Cruise Ship. According to police, the victim was a passenger on board the boat, docked at Prince George Wharf on January 27, when he jumped from one floor of the ship to another. The victim suffered serious injuries and was declared dead at the scene. Carnival issued a statement following the incident saying the guest fell. Two weeks earlier, a 25-year-old crew member of the Royal Caribbean Cruise's Monarch of the Sea also allegedly committed suicide when he was seen jumping from the vessel. The incident took place six miles from the port of Nassau on January 12. Police say they are investigating all three incidents.