The moms say they were both covered in bruises and tested positive for the presence of sedatives and other drugs.
Two women have come forward to say they were drugged and assaulted by a staffer at a Bahamian report, two weeks after the U.S. State Department issued a travel warning due to high levels of crime in the country.
Amber Shearer and her friend Dongayla Dobson were on a “mom’s getaway,” taking a Carnival Cruise to the Bahamas.
“No kids, no men, just us, like we’re back at 4-H camp,” Shearer tells Inside Edition.
The two moms say they were enjoying their vacation until the last day, when they left the cruise ship and went ashore.
They say they were looking for sea shells on the beach when a staff member of the resort offered them a two-for-one drink special, which they accepted. They say that a staff member then said he could guide the women to where the best shells were located.
“We noticed we’re starting to feel these drinks pretty strongly,” Dobson says.
The friends claim their drinks were drugged and that they have limited memories of what happened next.
“I came to being raped by my assailant,” Shearer says.
“I remember being pushed down. I vaguely remember the guy’s face and the facial hair,” Dobson says.
The moms say they were both covered in bruises and tested positive for the presence of sedatives and other drugs when they returned to the ship.
The women’s allegations come two weeks after the U.S. State Department issued a level two advisory, warning American tourists to “exercise increased caution in the Bahamas due to crime.”
In January alone, 18 people were murdered in the Bahamas. Most were victims of gang warfare.
Shearer and Dobson say they were unaware of the State Department’s travel warning for tourists.
“After we left the infirmary, back to our rooms after we did full rape kits, that’s when our family notified us,” Dobson says.
Their attorney, Nicholas Gerson of Gerson & Schwartz, P.A., spoke with Inside Edition.
“The law requires cruise lines to warn about dangerous conditions that they know or should have known about,” Gerson says.
Bahamian police say they arrested two suspects.
In a statement to Inside Edition, Carnival says they routinely share guidance with guests about keeping safe while on shore. They say they are cooperating with Bahamian police in the investigation.
