FL FL - Kevin McGrath, 26, missing from a cruise ship, Miami, 4 Sept 2023

[Charlot123]

I’ve noticed that in initial reporting media tends to get its info from other media, rather than doing their own legwork. Even quotes from family can conflict with other stories. So errors are magnified until an official timeline comes out. Thankfully, LE probably has the timeline nailed down, but the media is still running in circles, keeping us confused.
Here’s hoping Kevin is safe somewhere. If I were family, I’d insist that the ship is searched again, even though it has set sail. There are nooks and crannies and searches aren’t always thorough.

JMO

100% it needs to be checked. Especially seldom used utility places.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

That is why I am concerned that an authorized crew member let him get off the ship, maybe to go into Miami with someone to a late night club or something. And perhaps is afraid to come forward now that this blew up and Kevin is missing.

How would a crew member let someone off the ship while they were still sailing? At 2:00AM, the ship would have been slowing down in preparation for docking, but the vessel is still moving and quite a way from shore. Unless a passenger jumps or is tossed overboard, no one gets off the ship until it docks and clears customs. The ship probably docked at @6:00AM, with the earliest disembarkations beginning at 7:00.

FWIW, I'm sure there are violations, but crew members are not supposed to fraternize with passengers.

 

[GMS]

I don't believe this article from CBS 12 News has been shared. It has some quotes from Sean McGrath, KM father.

I've not previously seen the below statement. SM is speaking on what Andre (twin brother who was sharing a room with KM) told the family. (bbm)

“He said he heard the door open anywhere from 5-7 (a.m.) because it’s dark in the room, and can’t really tell the time,” Sean recalled.

Previous MSM reports have indicated KM's card key was scanned to access the cabin room at 3:30am, so this referenced 5am - 7am time frame could have been KM leaving the room?

Estimated timeline based on varying news outlets and accompanying possible scenarios

2am: Andre confirms seeing KM in their cabin
(KM goes back out to dance, drink, etc.)

3:30am: KM's card key is scanned accessing the cabin door
(KM returns to the room)

5am - 7am: Andre hears cabin door opening.
(KM leaves the room for final time)

7:30am: Family reports KM missing.

Mystery at Sea: Port St. Lucie man seemingly vanishes aboard cruise ship, remains missing several days later

A Port St. Lucie family who spent the weekend celebrating a birthday on a cruise ship is now in the middle of a nightmare.

cbs12.com

 

[Charlot123]

I don't believe this article from CBS 12 News has been shared. It has some quotes from Sean McGrath, KM father.

I've not previously seen the below statement. SM is speaking on what Andre (twin brother who was sharing a room with KM) told the family. (bbm)

“He said he heard the door open anywhere from 5-7 (a.m.) because it’s dark in the room, and can’t really tell the time,” Sean recalled.

Previous MSM reports have indicated KM's card key was scanned to access the cabin room at 3:30am, so this referenced 5am - 7am time frame could have been KM leaving the room?

Estimated timeline based on varying news outlets and accompanying possible scenarios

2am: Andre confirms seeing KM in their cabin
(KM goes back out to dance, drink, etc.)

3:30am: KM's card key is scanned accessing the cabin door
(KM returns to the room)

5am - 7am: Andre hears cabin door opening.
(KM leaves the room for final time)

7:30am: Family reports KM missing.

Mystery at Sea: Port St. Lucie man seemingly vanishes aboard cruise ship, remains missing several days later

A Port St. Lucie family who spent the weekend celebrating a birthday on a cruise ship is now in the middle of a nightmare.

cbs12.com

From my two cruises (didn’t like either), if my family member would leave the cabin at 5-7 and it would be unusual, I’d at least open the door to check where the person was going. If I don’t do it, I probably have an idea about it. Andre, probably, had at least a certain idea. The first thought that popped into his head could be the right explanation. The benefit is, there is only a limited amount of people, passengers and crew, on the ship.

 

[Chimera]

There are security cameras every where, correct ?
So, KM should be seen leaving his room for the final time.
I was fearing foul play, but if someone harmed KM and concealed him, it should have been solved by now.

If I was his family, I'd ask that the cameras be scoured thoroughly for signs of KM, who he was with if not alone, and when was the last time he was seen ?
Sorry for his worried loved ones !

I hope there is a good ending for Kevin.
My .02 is that to preserve their reputation, a lot of crime is covered up on cruise ships !
Omo.

 

[katydid23]

I have a friend who used to play in a band that did a lot of cruise gigs. She loved it at first. But after awhile she hated it. She did say that some of the crew members were pretty shady. Warned us before our Cabo trip to be wary ---especially if leaving the casino after drinking and winning.

I wonder if KM went to the casino at 4 am?

 

[ArianeEmory]

That is why I am concerned that an authorized crew member let him get off the ship, maybe to go into Miami with someone to a late night club or something. And perhaps is afraid to come forward now that this blew up and Kevin is missing.

This isn’t possible for a number of reasons, but the main one is that on the night in question (the night before disembark), the ship was out at sea.

If I was his family, I'd ask that the cameras be scoured thoroughly for signs of KM, who he was with if not alone, and when was the last time he was seen ?

The cruise line has already said he doesn’t appear on any of their video from the morning of disembarkation. (I’m not saying they’re necessarily 100% trustworthy, I’m just repeating what they said.)

And just for anyone curious: passengers get on and off the ship via long mobile gangways that are extended to the ship when it’s docked. Everyone is checked/scanned off as they leave. There isn’t really, for example, some secret exit they could use to sneak off.

(And just to chime in for cruises, I understand why some people find the idea loathsome, and I have no interest in 3-day party cruises, but I’ve been on some really beautiful ships with super nice and chill people. Unfortunately it’s a “you get what you pay for” thing, and I find that a lot of people who say they cruised once and hated it were on the cheapest/shortest cruise available to them.)

 

[tarabull]

Mystery Involving Missing Passenger From Carnival Conquest

A passenger was reported missing from a Carnival cruise ship yesterday following a three-day cruise from Miami. Several local and national news outlets

www.cruiselawnews.com

Snipped & BBM...
...The ship’s CCTV did not indicate anyone falling overboard during the cruise nor did the shipboard cameras provide an explanation where Mr. McGrath may have gone. Carnival claims that it conducted a complete search of the ship. Like all other Carnival cruise ships, the Carnival Conquest is not equipped with an automatic man overboard (MOB) system which would have instantly reported someone going over the railing, recorded the event, and then tracked the overboard passenger in the water.

 

[ArianeEmory]

Mystery Involving Missing Passenger From Carnival Conquest

A passenger was reported missing from a Carnival cruise ship yesterday following a three-day cruise from Miami. Several local and national news outlets

www.cruiselawnews.com

Snipped & BBM...
...The ship’s CCTV did not indicate anyone falling overboard during the cruise nor did the shipboard cameras provide an explanation where Mr. McGrath may have gone. Carnival claims that it conducted a complete search of the ship. Like all other Carnival cruise ships, the Carnival Conquest is not equipped with an automatic man overboard (MOB) system which would have instantly reported someone going over the railing, recorded the event, and then tracked the overboard passenger in the water.

Thanks, good to know.

With the newest info posted here, I’m leaning towards the idea that he jumped at some point in the very early morning hours, before the ship docked. This kind of suicide is not uncommon. (And here’s a reminder that it’s very hard to accidentally fall off a cruise ship.) Maybe he had been thinking about it already, and he knew the ship would dock in a few hours, so it was his last chance. And since their room had no balcony, he would have had to leave the room go to a public deck.

 

[steeltowngirl]

This isn’t possible for a number of reasons, but the main one is that on the night in question (the night before disembark), the ship was out at sea.



The cruise line has already said he doesn’t appear on any of their video from the morning of disembarkation. (I’m not saying they’re necessarily 100% trustworthy, I’m just repeating what they said.)

And just for anyone curious: passengers get on and off the ship via long mobile gangways that are extended to the ship when it’s docked. Everyone is checked/scanned off as they leave. There isn’t really, for example, some secret exit they could use to sneak off.

(And just to chime in for cruises, I understand why some people find the idea loathsome, and I have no interest in 3-day party cruises, but I’ve been on some really beautiful ships with super nice and chill people. Unfortunately it’s a “you get what you pay for” thing, and I find that a lot of people who say they cruised once and hated it were on the cheapest/shortest cruise available to them.)

The ship likely didn’t dock before 6 am, sounds like?

Wish they would release a timeline. If he’s not on that ship stuck in some cubby, then he had to have gone overboard.

 

[ArianeEmory]

The ship likely didn’t dock before 6 am, sounds like?

Wish they would release a timeline. If he’s not on that ship stuck in some cubby, then he had to have gone overboard.

Yeah, in my experience at Port of Miami (although I’ve never been on Carnival), the ships are usually docked by 6-6:30, do their paperwork with the local officials, and start disembarking passengers by 7ish.

 

[steeltowngirl]

Thanks, good to know.

With the newest info posted here, I’m leaning towards the idea that he jumped at some point in the very early morning hours, before the ship docked. This kind of suicide is not uncommon. (And here’s a reminder that it’s very hard to accidentally fall off a cruise ship.) Maybe he had been thinking about it already, and he knew the ship would dock in a few hours, so it was his last chance. And since their room had no balcony, he would have had to leave the room go to a public deck.

I noticed one concerning group he follows on FB: “Stop Soldier Suicide”

 

[Detective Willy]

I am 50/50 between foul play and a staged disappearance.

Wonder if he has a good life insurance policy?

 

[Charlot123]

I noticed one concerning group he follows on FB: “Stop Soldier Suicide”

Is he still on active duty? I know it says that he has been an army veteran, which to me means, released from active duty, which it turn means that VA (having very good psychiatric services) should be accessible for Kevin. Unless “veteran” does not automatically imply, discharged? I know that the journalists may not necessarily report correctly, either.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Mystery Involving Missing Passenger From Carnival Conquest

A passenger was reported missing from a Carnival cruise ship yesterday following a three-day cruise from Miami. Several local and national news outlets

www.cruiselawnews.com

Snipped & BBM...
...The ship’s CCTV did not indicate anyone falling overboard during the cruise nor did the shipboard cameras provide an explanation where Mr. McGrath may have gone. Carnival claims that it conducted a complete search of the ship. Like all other Carnival cruise ships, the Carnival Conquest is not equipped with an automatic man overboard (MOB) system which would have instantly reported someone going over the railing, recorded the event, and then tracked the overboard passenger in the water.

If this quote is correct - that the ship had CCTV but no detection system for someone going overboard, then he could have gone overboard without it being detected. IMO/JMO.

 

[Tealgrove]

Do we know if he suffered from any mental health issues, I.e., PTSD?

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“[His disappearance is] so random, out of nowhere,” Danielle told USA TODAY. “Everyone has different relationships with the person but me, how I know my brother, how I last spoke to him, his energy, his spirit. This is definitely not like him.”

“Did he fall somewhere and he’s screaming for help and no one hears him? Did he fall down an elevator shaft?” she told the outlet. “I just don’t know. It’s just anything.”

“I haven’t eaten all day. I haven’t had a sip of anything all day,” Danielle said. “My eyes hurt from crying up and down. I’m sick to my stomach.”

Coast Guard suspends search for missing Carnival Cruise passenger Kevin McGrath

“I haven’t eaten all day. I haven’t had a sip of anything all day,” the missing passenger’s sister said. “My eyes hurt from crying up and down. I’m sick to my stomach.&#8221…

nypost.com

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Do we know if he suffered from any mental health issues, I.e., PTSD?

The only indication that I've seen is a statement on KM's "Missing" poster: The missing person may be in need of services.

This has bothered me from the get-go. To the best of my knowledge, no one has addressed the statement. Why doesn't a reporter ask what this means? Why is the family avoiding it? I noticed it right away when I saw the poster.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

I noticed one concerning group he follows on FB: “Stop Soldier Suicide”

From the "Missing" poster: The missing person may be in need of services.

Why is the media and KM's family avoiding the elephant in the room? How did the statement about "needing services" get on the "Missing" poster and what does it mean? What kind of services? Was KM being treated for a mental and/or physical condition that family members don't want to discuss? Is/Was he on medication? Seems like no one wants to talk about this. There might still have been some activity (dancing, casino, bars open, etc.) in the wee hours, but outdoor upper decks where the pools are located were probably deserted. It would be very easy to go overboard without being noticed. JMO

 

[ArianeEmory]

From the "Missing" poster: The missing person may be in need of services.

Why is the media and KM's family avoiding the elephant in the room? How did the statement about "needing services" get on the "Missing" poster and what does it mean? What kind of services? Was KM being treated for a mental and/or physical condition that family members don't want to discuss? Is/Was he on medication? Seems like no one wants to talk about this. There might still have been some activity (dancing, casino, bars open, etc.) in the wee hours, but outdoor upper decks where the pools are located were probably deserted. It would be very easy to go overboard without being noticed. JMO

I can't help but wonder if this is also why there seems to be some possibly intentional obfuscation about when he was last seen.

If he was last seen before the ship docked, then suicide is a more likely scenario.

If he was last seen after the ship docked, then 'blame' can sort of be deflected onto the cruise line in various ways, such as the speculation that he was allowed to sneak off somehow. (I mean, I don't know what the endgame would be here, unless a civil lawsuit is incoming.)