A 19-year-old Michigan man has been charged with making a false bomb threat aboard a Carnival cruise ship, which sparked an extensive search and reaction from law enforcement. If found guilty, he may spend up to five years in prison.
Joshua Darrell Lowe II, of Michigan, was charged with pretending to be a minister in the commission of a crime to create a false bomb threat on a Carnival Cruise Line ship.
According to a criminal complaint filed against him, in January, as the Carnival Sunrise steamed from Miami to Jamaica, a man allegedly wrote an email stating that “someone might have a bomb.”.
The crew explored more than 1,000 cabins and brought the hoax to the notice of Jamaican authorities as well as the U.S. Coast Guard. In Jamaica, Marine Police escorted it to port when the ship arrived.
U.S. Attorney Mark Totten stated, “We take every threat of mass violence seriously,” stressing that these hoaxes not only put lives in danger but also squander resources that could be used to combat actual threats.
Lowe, 19, may have to pay back the money he spent on the scam in addition to serving a maximum sentence of five years in jail.
The FBI is in charge of the investigation, and Special Agent Cheyvoryea Gibson has emphasized that making bomb threats is a serious matter with dire repercussions for those who foment unwarranted fear.
Lowe’s lawyer was not listed in court records, and Carnival has not yet responded to the incident.
