Two passengers made off with US$12,800 worth of sculptures during a September voyage on the Carnival Legend cruise, as revealed in an FBI search warrant filed in the District Court of Maryland. The voyage embarked from Baltimore, journeying to Bermuda/King's Wharf on September 24 and returning on September 30, according to FBI special agent Grace Meyer.
On October 1, an art auctioneer from Carnival Legend reported that the sculptures were missing from the ship's art gallery. Subsequently, the ship's security staff reviewed surveillance footage, which pointed to a couple who had entered the gallery empty-handed on September 29 and exited while carrying objects that resembled the stolen sculptures, as captured by the onboard CCTV cameras.
Carnival conducts art auctions on all its ships, featuring various forms of artwork, including paintings, drawings, and sculptures.
The FBI initiated an investigation into the suspects and located one of them through a Facebook account. A photograph on Facebook showed one of the suspects dressed in a white shirt, dark vest, and striped tie, matching their attire in the surveillance footage.
A representative from the US Attorney's Office in Maryland said that the FBI executed a search warrant, recovering the stolen sculptures from the couple's residences in Baltimore. The FBI is currently considering pursuing charges related to theft and transportation of stolen goods.
The stolen sculptures included a piece by Robert Wyland named "Kiss the Sea," valued at $6,200 by the FBI, and "Tappin' the Keys for the Love" by Marcus Glenn, estimated to be worth $6,600. Both sculptures were small enough to fit in a standard-sized backpack.
For more Carnival Legend incidents and accidents see the ship's CruiseMinus page.