Cruise Ship Passenger Jumps Overboard in Puerto Rico To Avoid Massive Casino Gambling Debt
A man is in custody after jumping overboard from a cruise ship as it docked in Puerto Rico. The man allegedly tried to jump ship and bypass immigration and customs due to a gambling debt. The man in question, Jey González-Díaz, was picked up by people on a jet ski and tried to disappear into San Juan without detection. It feels like something straight out of a comedic thriller. Here’s what we know about the wannabe escape artist.
A man jumped from a cruise ship docking in Puerto Rico
Jey González-Díaz attempted a daring escape from a cruise ship docking in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The passenger jumped from the ship and was picked up by people on a jet ski. The moment was captured with the cruise ship’s cameras and shows González-Díaz attempting to flee.
He was caught by authorities in front of the federal building in San Juan. He claimed that he ran from the ship because he didn’t want to declare cash that he had on him. According to CBS News, González-Díaz was caught with two phones, five forms of identification, and more than $14,000. He claimed that he didn’t want to declare the cash when going through Customs and Border Protection’s inspection of cruise ship passengers as they docked in Puerto Rico.
However, it turns out that he was trying to bounce on a gambling debt he accrued while on the ship. Royal Caribbean informed authorities that González-Díaz racked up a gambling debt of more than $16,000. In total, González-Díaz owed Royal Caribbean $16,710.24 from the cruise he took from Puerto Rico to Barbados and back.
Court filings show that González-Díaz was booked under the name Jeremy Diaz. A further investigation into the IDs he was carrying showed one for Jeremy Omar González-Díaz. That person has been in federal custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, since January. Jey claims that Jeremy is his brother.
The whole story has social media users laughing
It is a really wild idea to think you can run away from a cruise ship. González-Díaz’s attempt to skip out on his gambling debt has left people stunned. For one, trying to flee from a cruise ship is just wild work. The ships literally have a list of all of the passengers so it isn’t like he is completely anonymous. Second, the world doesn’t work like it does in the movies. Quick getaways using jetskis after jumping off a cruise ship in Puerto Rico isn’t a thing that just happens.
He is facing federal charges for the stunt. He was granted bail but could still be fined up to $250,000 and may face up to five years in prison. But González-Díaz didn’t just let the authorities catch him. He managed to get in one quip. After the officers found his IDs, they asked him for his full name.
“If you guys were good at your job, you would know that,” he said, according to the complaint.
