A wild scene unfolded in Puerto Rico when a Royal Caribbean passenger allegedly jumped overboard to escape more than $16,000 in unpaid casino debt… and now he’s facing serious federal charges.
According to court documents, Jey Gonzalez-Diaz boarded the Rhapsody of the Seas at the Port of San Juan on August 31. When the ship returned from Barbados on September 1, he reportedly leapt into the water around 9:15 a.m., just as U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers were carrying out inspections.
Surveillance footage captured Gonzalez-Diaz making the jump. A man on a jet ski pulled him to shore, where authorities quickly tracked him down near Puerto Rico’s Capitol Building.
When officers stopped him, Gonzalez-Diaz had $14,600 in cash, two cellphones, and five different IDs. He allegedly told investigators in Spanish that he jumped because he didn’t want to declare the money and feared being taxed on it.
Royal Caribbean later revealed to investigators that Gonzalez-Diaz… booked under the alias Jeremy Diaz… owed the cruise line $16,710.24, almost entirely from casino gambling.
Court filings also show conflicting records: a man named Jeremy Omar Gonzalez-Diaz has been in federal custody since January at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Guaynabo. When questioned about his real identity, Jey Gonzalez-Diaz reportedly snapped back at investigators: “If you guys were good at your job, you would know that.”
Local outlet Wapa.TV reported Gonzalez-Diaz was released on bail. However, if convicted, he faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
It remains unclear whether he has obtained legal representation.
