News Americas, NEWARK, N.J. Thurs. Aug. 6, 2015: A 25-year-old employee of Royal Caribbean cruise lines will have to spend another 5 months and two weeks in prison for assaulting a passenger on board a cruise to the Caribbean.
Karan Seechurn was sentenced Wednesday in federal court in Newark, New Jersey after he pleaded guilty in April to abusive sexual contact. He also received a year of supervised release.
Because Seechurn has already served 7 months and 2 weeks in jail he will be given credit for time served and will serve a maximum of another 5 months and 2 weeks. If released early, which is probable, he will serve less than a year in jail and will be home by Christmas.
Federal prosecutors say Seechurn was responsible for restocking guest room minibars on the five-day cruise from Bayonne, New Jersey, to the Bahamas.
He admitted he was off-duty when he entered the cabin of a female passenger on December 23, 2014, using a master key.
He molested the woman in her bed by touching her genitalia. The woman awoke and pushed Seechurn off her. Prosecutors say he threatened to burn down the ship, the Quantum of the Seas, if the woman reported it.
Seechurn is from the island nation of Mauritius. His Facebook profile says he still works at Royal Caribbean Cruises and is in a relationship.
Seechum will be immediately deported when he is released from jail.
