Family Sues Royal Caribbean After Passenger Allegedly Assaults Crew and Dies

The family of a Royal Caribbean International passenger who died on its Navigator of the Seas ship last year is suing the cruise line, alleging he was overserved alcohol and fatally restrained by crew members.

Michael Virgil, 35, died aboard Navigator of the Seas during a December 2024 cruise from Los Angeles to Mexico. He was traveling with his fiancée, Connie Aguilar, their son, and other relatives.

The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of Florida by Aguilar on behalf of Virgil’s estate, claims Royal Caribbean “breached its duty of reasonable care” by overserving him alcohol and employing staff who were not properly trained, among other allegations.

Virgil was reportedly served at least 33 alcoholic drinks on the day he died and became disoriented while attempting to locate his cabin. He allegedly assaulted two crew members, and video footage appeared to show him trying to force open the door of a room where a crew member was hiding.

Kevin Haynes, attorney for the victim’s fiancée, told local Los Angeles station FOX 11, “If you’re serving someone 25, 30-plus drinks, in no world could you not see that the person is intoxicated. Once they created that situation, he acted out. He did not act as a normal person would. Clearly he was intoxicated. He is not a big drinker. He was known by his family as a gentle giant.”

A video recorded by passenger Christifer Mikhail shows Virgil kicking at a door in a hallway and shouting, “I’m going to knock you the f— out.”

“The gentlemen that was drunk said he was going to kill us,” Mikhail told FOX 11. “He started chasing us down the hallway.”

Haynes commented on the video showing Virgil agitated: “The video of Michael agitated, kicking a door—it’s totally out of character for him. We’re not going to sit here and say it’s good behavior, but that’s not who he was as a person.”

The complaint recounts the events of that day: “Decedent became agitated. Royal Caribbean crew members, including security personnel, approached decedent in an attempt to subdue him. Royal Caribbean crew members, including security personnel, then tackled decedent to the ground, stood on decedent’s body with their full weight, and compressed decedent’s body, causing decedent to stop moving.”

According to the filing, crew members used multiple cans of pepper spray on Virgil, and injected him with haloperidol as a sedative. The complaint notes that Virgil’s death was ruled a homicide, stating that “as the use of force by Royal Caribbean crew members, as well as over service of alcoholic beverages leading to intoxication, directly contributed to and caused the physiologic conditions leading to [Virgil’s] death.”

The County of Los Angeles Medical Examiner ruled the death a homicide caused by the “combined effects of mechanical asphyxia, obesity, cardiomegaly, and ethanol intoxication.”

In an email to USA TODAY, Royal Caribbean said, “We were saddened by the passing of one of our guests, worked with authorities on their investigation, and will refrain from commenting any further on pending litigation.”

The lawsuit seeks damages and a jury trial.