On Sunday morning, Lexus Moorer, a 31-year-old woman, was arrested at the Port of Miami by police officers for allegedly stealing eight credit cards to fund a family vacation to the Caribbean.
According to reports, Moorer is accused of using the stolen credit cards to book two staterooms on a seven-day cruise ship with the Oasis of the Seas from Royal Caribbean International. The cost of the trip amounted to $22,425, which was allegedly paid for using fraudulent credit cards.
Royal Caribbean reported the suspicious activity to the police, which led to Moorer’s arrest at the Port of Miami. The alleged fraud was detected after Moorer had already boarded the Oasis of the Seas cruise ship, which made several stops in the Caribbean before returning to Miami.
Crime on the High Seas
Lexus Moorer, a native of Raleigh, North Carolina, faces eight counts of grand theft, eight counts of fraudulent use of a credit card, and four counts of unlawful possession of a stolen credit card, according to county records obtained by News 10.
Royal Caribbean reported the fraudulent activity to the police. Upon her arrest, U.S. Customs officials and Border Protection officers found four of the eight stolen credit cards in Moorer’s wallet.
According to the arrest report, Moorer used the eight stolen credit cards to book two cabins on the 225,282 gross tons Oasis of the Seas sailing departing February 19. The seven-day cruise made stops at Labadee in Haiti on Tuesday, Puerto Rico on Wednesday, St. Thomas on Thursday, and The Bahamas on Saturday before returning to Miami on Sunday morning.
Arrested on Arrival
Crew onboard the Royal Caribbean cruise ship detected the fraudulent activity and alerted the police, who arrested Moorer at the Port of Miami at about 11 a.m. on Sunday.
After her arrest, Moorer appeared in court on Monday in Miami-Dade County, where she faced eight counts of grand theft, eight counts of fraudulent use of a credit card, and four counts of unlawful possession of a stolen credit card.
According to county records, corrections officers held Moorer since 1:40 p.m. on Sunday at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. The investigation also involved Homeland Security Investigations.
Crime Doesn’t Pay, Even onboard Cruise Ships
The alleged credit card fraud committed by Lexus Moorer is a serious crime that can have severe consequences. Fortunately, in this case, Royal Caribbean was vigilant in detecting and reporting the fraudulent activity to the police.
Cruise ships are equipped with advanced technology that can help detect and prevent credit card fraud. Cruise ships often work with financial institutions to monitor onboard credit card transactions. This allows them to detect and respond to any fraudulent activity quickly.
While this case involving Lexus Moorer may be an exception, it serves as a reminder that even on cruise ships, credit card fraud will be detected, and those who commit such crimes will face severe legal consequences.
The 5,400-passenger Oasis of the Seas set sail again on Sunday afternoon on its next itinerary. The ship departed from Miami, Florida, and spent the next day at Perfect Day at Coco Cay in the Bahamas.
Today, Oasis of the Seas is in Cozumel, Mexico. Tomorrow, March 2, guests will spend the day in Roatan, Honduras, followed by Costa Maya, Mexico. The ship returns to Miami, Florida, on March 5.
