The body of a man who died on a cruise ship after allegedly being served 33 alcoholic drinks was stuffed into a fridge by staff, his family have claimed.
According to Michael Virgil's heartbroken fiancée, who has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Royal Caribbean, crew members 'continued the cruise for multiple days' despite his corpse being onboard.
The 35-year-old died in December last year during a three-day voyage from San Pedro, Los Angeles, to Ensenada, Mexico on the Navigator of the Seas.
He was on the vessel with his wife-to-be Connie Aguilar and their seven-year-old autistic son when chaos erupted just hours after it left the US port.
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According to a lawsuit lodged against the cruise firm by his loved ones, Virgil was informed that his family's room was not ready when they arrived on the ship.
It is claimed that crew members then suggested they set up camp at a bar on the ship in the meantime - and during this period, the dad is alleged to have had 33 alcoholic beverages. It is unclear how many he actually consumed.
Virgil then became 'agitated' after he was unable to find his cabin on the Royal Caribbean ship, prompting crew members and security staff to confront him on a corridor.
The severely intoxicated traveller then went on to assault two staff members, while fellow passengers claim he also made threats to kill.
Ultimately, Virgil was detained by security after being blasted with pepper spray and injected with a sedative, the wrongful death lawsuit alleges, while his wrists were zip tied.
An autopsy conducted by a Los Angeles County Medical Examiner ruled that the dad's death was a homicide that was caused by the 'use of force by others', leading to him passing away from the 'combined effects of mechanical asphyxia, obesity, cardiomegaly and ethanol intoxication'.
The lawyer representing Virgil's family has claimed that the Royal Caribbean crew attempted to restrain him by 'putting their full body weight on him' after 'negligently' serving him copious amounts of booze.
"And they did that for three minutes," Kevin Haynes told the Daily Mail of staff members attempts to subdue the passenger.
"Everyone remembers that very tragic story with George Floyd, and this is similar in the sense that they suppressed someone against their will, restrained him and caused him to stop being able to breathe."
He alleged that Virgil's fiancée was informed that 'everything's going to be fine' and that her partner was being 'given a sedating injection', before adding: "The next phone call she gets, he's dead.
"His behaviour was out of character for him. He was scared and acting out of fear. Whatever Michael may have done during that stressful time, fuelled by alcohol, it shouldn't have given him a death sentence."
The lawyer claims that the doctor on the ship pronounced Virgil dead at 8:32 pm, around two hours after the tense incident with security, but was still breathing when moved to the ship’s medical bay.
Aguilar alleges that she only discovered what had happened to her future husband after being summoned over the ship's intercom.
She then begged the Royal Caribbean crew to return the ship to Long Beach, but Haynes said: "They would not do it. They put Michael in a refrigerator and continued the cruise for multiple days."
In the wrongful death lawsuit filed in the Southern District of Florida against Royal Caribbean, Virgil's family alleged the cruise line 'breached its duty of reasonable care'.
It claims that the travel firm failed to monitor the excessive alcohol consumption of passengers, that employees aren't properly qualified, among a myriad of other bombshell claims. The lawsuit seeks a jury trial and damages.
The lawsuit also alleges that Royal Caribbean purposely markets its 'all you can drink' packages to those onboard, while ensuring there is a bar in 'every nook and cranny' of the ship.
In a statement to CBS News, a Royal Caribbean spokesperson said: "We were saddened by the passing of one of our guests, worked with authorities on their investigation, and will refrain from commenting further on pending litigation."
LADbible have contacted the cruise firm for further comment.
Topics: Alcohol, Cruise Ship, Royal Caribbean, Travel, US News, Health
Olivia Burke