Cruise ship passenger accused of exposing himself, propositioning 14-year-old in sauna

WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

Florida police arrested a cruise ship passenger after he allegedly exposed himself and propositioned a teen boy in the vessel's sauna. 

Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas was sailing in international waters on Tuesday when Anish Shan of Columbus, Georgia, approached a 14-year-old boy around 7 p.m., according to an arrest report obtained by Local 10.

Shan, 21, allegedly asked the boy how old he was – after learning how old he was, Miami-Dade Police said in the report, Shan "started to masturbate" while "making eye contact with the victim." 

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Anish Shan, 21, was charged by Miami-Dade Police with lewd and lascivious conduct and lewd and lascivious exhibition on a child under 16. (Miami-Dade Police Department)

The 21-year-old asked the boy if he had ever had oral sex before, police said. When the boy said he had not, Shan allegedly "solicited oral sex" from him. 

Miami-Dade Police arrested Shan upon the ship's return to Port Miami on Friday and charged him with lewd and lascivious conduct and lewd and lascivious exhibition on a child under 16. 

Shan was taken to the department's special victim's bureau for questioning. 

"Post Miranda, the defendant admitted to the victim's allegations," police wrote. 

He was released from Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center on $12,500 and on the condition that he would not contact the boy, according to court records. His attorney could not immediately be reached for comment.

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The incident took place on Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas, pictured here. (Reuters)

It is unclear whether Shan was detained on the cruise ship in the days before his arrest. Royal Caribbean could not be immediately reached for comment at press time. 

The number of reported rapes and sexual assaults on cruises hit a new high in 2023, according to stats compiled by the FBI.

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Miami-Dade Police said Anish Shan confessed to the allegations after he was arrested on March 8 and read his Miranda rights. (Miami-Dade Police )

There were 131 reported incidents in 2023 compared to 87 in 2022 and 101 in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic crippled the industry for about two years.

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Sexual assaults are the most commonly reported crime aboard cruise ships, according to Transportation Department data.