A Royal Caribbean passenger died after being detained for allegedly assaulting crew members and threatening other travelers in a drunken fit of rage, according to a report.
Michael Virgil, 35, died Friday onboard the Ensenada-bound cruise after his family claims security injected him with some kind of sedative, FOX 11 reported.
Virgil allegedly threatened to kill others and assaulted two crew members in the wild outburst that began not even an hour after the Navigator of the Seas set sail from San Pedro, according to the Los Angeles news station.
He allegedly kicked one Royal Caribbean staffer in the face and punched the other.
“The gentleman that was drunk said that he was going to kill us,” fellow traveler Christifer Mikhail told the station. “He started chasing us down the hallway.”
Mikhail said he was running with the crew member who jumped into a towel closet and locked himself inside.
Virgil then repeatedly tried to kick open the door, a video of the altercation shot by Mikhail shows. He repeatedly kicks the door with steel-toed boots while spewing profanity before removing his shirt in a hallway of the ship, according to the clip.
He also allegedly went on a racial tirade, according to FOX 11.
“I was kind of scared,” Mikhail said. “I’m stuck in this hallway. He could of flicked me and thrown me like 30 feet because the guy he punched kinda flew a couple feet back.”
Several Royal Caribbean security team members were able to eventually detain a tired-out Virgil by using zip ties, handcuffs and either bear or pepper spray, according to the bystander and his video.
The unruly traveler died within an hour, the station reported, after his family said he was injected with a sedative.
Virgil’s devastated family told FOX 11 that his shocking outburst was uncharacteristic of the dad, who was on the cruise with his 7-year-old autistic son and his fiancé.
“He didn’t deserve to die over it,” a relative told the station.
The cause of his death is pending an autopsy. The FBI is investigating the altercation and the death.
“We are saddened by the passing of one of our guests,” Royal Caribbean said in a statement to FOX 11. “We offered support to the family and are working with authorities on their investigation.”
The cruise line didn’t immediately return a message sent by The Post.
This post was originally published on here
