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Topics: Royal Caribbean, Travel, US News, Cruise ship
Bec Oakes
Topics: Royal Caribbean, Travel, US News, Cruise ship
Royal Caribbean has responded following claims that a 20-year-old man who jumped overboard had been served alcohol despite being underage.
On April 4, Levion Parker, from North Port, Florida, jumped overboard from the 11th deck of a Royal Caribbean cruise ship after an argument with his dad.
The Liberty of the Seas was returning to Fort Lauderdale following a four-day cruise when the incident occurred.
The cruise line immediately launched a search and rescue mission alongside the US Coast Guard, but it was suspended five days later on April 9.
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Other passengers have since come forward to share what happened.
Bryan Sims told The Post that he was hanging out with Parker and his brother in the hot tub 'until 3:30am.'
He said that Parker, who was 'sat right beside [him] the whole time], was 'pretty drunk'.
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He continued: "As we were walking from the hot tub back to the elevators, his dad and brother were walking towards us. His dad was fussing at him for being drunk, I guess.
"When we got to them, he said to his dad, 'I’ll fix this right now.' And he jumped out the window in front of us all."
The 20-year-old's father, Francel Parker, has since accused the cruise line of serving alcohol to his underage son.
"We don't drink. I'd like to know how my son was served so much alcohol," he demanded.
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But, in a statement from Royal Caribbean, the cruise company reiterated it had a strict underage drinking policy.
They told UNILAD: "Our hearts go out to the family, and we continue to offer them our support and assistance during this difficult time.
"Our policies strictly prohibit guests under the age of 21 from being served alcohol onboard."
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It has been suggested that Levion had gotten drunk while the ship was docked in the Dominican Republic earlier that day, where the legal drinking age is 18.
"The ship was docked in the Dominican Republic that day, so we cannot speak to what guest did when he was off the ship," a source told the Daily Mail.
Eight days on from Levion's disappearance, Francel is still holding out hope for his son.
“As soon as he went off the side, I prayed over him," he told the Daily Sun.
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"I was confident the prayers I said over my son were heard. I stand on the word of God.
"I believe he is alive."