A now fired Florida deputy named Francisco Melo likely thought he would be partying on a themed “Groove Cruise” that is currently taking place onboard Royal Caribbeanโs Allure of the Seas. However, the 36-year-old cop never actually made it onboard the Oasis-class ship.
Instead, he was arrested in the Royal Caribbean Cruise Terminal (Cruise Terminal A) by the Miami-Dade Police Force for allegedly trying to smuggle narcotic pills onboard by hiding them in bags of Skittles, which he planned to sell during the voyage.
The special sailing, which embarked from PortMiami on January 23, 2025, and lasts until January 27, 2025, is a music festival at sea that features exclusive artist hosted activities and electronic dance music (EDM) parties.
The itinerary for the short sailing primarily consisted of sea days, with a call on Labadee, Haiti – Royal Caribbeanโs private destination – on January 25, 2025.
According to CBS News Miami, drug sniffing dogs were brought into the cruise port and alerted authorities to the approximately 60 MDMA pills (commonly known as ecstasy or molly) inside of Meloโs luggage.
The six-year veteran of the law was promptly taken into custody by the sheriffโs office that once employed him. He was relieved of duty and charged with the possession, sale, and trafficking of a controlled substance.
โAs sheriff, itโs my duty to make sure that our community can trust our deputies to protect them and uphold the law. I am disappointed to inform you that one of my deputies has been arrested for trafficking a controlled substance,โ Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz said in a statement.
โNarcotics donโt just harm those who use them, they devastate families, and fuel crime. No one is above the law, and this office will not tolerate criminal behavior from anyone, especially those entrusted to enforce it. The actions of this individual are a betrayal of the public trust and of all the deputies who work tirelessly to protect our community,โ continued Cordero-Stutz.
Melo has since been released on bond pending further legal proceedings.ย Royal Caribbean has not commented on the investigation or the arrest.ย
Cruise Guests Never in Danger
The up to 5,484 passengers onboard Allure of the Seas – or those passing through PortMiamiโs eight other passenger terminals on January 23 – were never in any danger.
In fact, authorities already knew that Melo was planning to embark on the chartered sailing – and suspected that he might be up to something nefarious.
In December of 2024, investigators set up an undercover operation in which Melo allegedly sold an undercover informant 12 MDMA pills for $240 – during which his upcoming cruise plans also came to light.
Therefore, local authorities and the Royal Caribbean security team were already on the lookout for the accused drug dealer – which resulted in the arrest.
โThis arrest is the result of a collaborative effort between the MDSO, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and the Miami-Dade State Attorney Office’s Public Corruption Prosecution Unit, who are committed to upholding the integrity and maintaining the public trust in law enforcement within Miami-Dade County,โ said Sheriff Cordero-Stutz.
Read Also: Are Cruises Safe? What You Really Need to Know
As always, safety is always the top priority for all of the cruise lines – including Royal Caribbean. This is why all guests and crew members – not just suspected deviants – have to undergo thorough security checks and document verification prior to boarding their cruise ship.
Some cruise lines even perform background checks on their incoming guests – which may uncover current warrants. If an active warrant is found, the appropriate authorities may be notified.
This is likely what happened to Dominic Weaver, who was recently arrested in PortMiami while disembarking his cruise ship in December 2024 – after successfully avoiding authorities for more than a decade. He allegedly owed more than $100,000 in back child support.
However, itโs unclear which cruise line the 47-year-old had sailed with and there were no reports of him causing problems while onboard.
If a passenger is found to be a threat to themselves or others during the sailing, the onboard security team members are trained to quickly subdue the guest – potentially even confining them to their cabin or locking them in the brig (or onboard jail).
While criminal activity is typically low in the cruising community, the cruise lines do take swift action when incidents arise.