FBI Houston is responding to an alleged homicide aboard MSC Seascape after the ship docked in Galveston on Monday. The case involves a guest incident at sea and a federal investigation that continued Monday morning.
FBI Houston officials said they could not provide additional details because the investigation is ongoing. The ship had already returned to the Port of Galveston after authorities instructed it to do so.
Galveston Monday response
An FBI Maritime Liaison Agent based out of the Texas City Resident Agency is working with the U.S. Coast Guard, the Port of Galveston Police Department, Customs and Border Protection and the cruise line on the incident. That puts the case in the hands of several agencies at once, with the federal role centered on the reported homicide and the port-related response.
MSC Cruises said it is cooperating fully with the investigation and providing support to those impacted. It also said the ship has since left the port and resumed its planned itinerary, even as FBI Houston kept working the case.
MSC Cruises and FBI Houston
The sequence matters for passengers and others tied to the voyage: the ship docked, the reported guest incident triggered a return to the Port of Galveston, and the vessel later continued on schedule. MSC Cruises did not describe what happened aboard the ship, and FBI Houston had no additional details to release Monday morning.
For now, the only firm conclusion is that the suspected homicide remains under active review while the cruise line has moved the vessel back into service.
