Cruise Ship Theft - Help and opinions needed.

[theJanitor]

So my MIL and her sister are on a cruise with a tour group. They are underway on the ship SILJA SYMPHONY (flying under Swedish flag) having just left Helsinki to Mariehamn, Finland. After dinner, she returned to her room to find her purse (cash, cards, passport, etc) stolen. She notified the ship and the tour guide, who seem to have not done much at this point, it seems. She has her cellphone on her person.

I told her that she needs to file a report with the ship and they the ship needs to call the police when it gets to port. After she tells security this intent, her purse, and all it's contents turns up in the buffet area. She called the CC companies to cancel the cards, but what else will she be at risk for?

Were they intending to steal her financial identity, her physical identity?
Is she now "marked"?
Is she at risk for getting mugged while ashore at the next stop?
Is this gang type activity?
How can she prevent a break in, especially when she's in the room?

She's Hong Kong Chinese, and not particularly versed in dealing with authorities, especially in a foreign country. so I'[m trying to help her work her way through this from here

[shootist26]

Sounds more like she brought her purse with her to do something before dinner, then brought it with her to dinner instead of putting it back in her room, forgot to take it with her after she finished dinner, and then went back into her cabin where her purse was nowhere to be found, and then in a moment of panic assumed someone stole it.

But seriously, the risk of being a victim of a organized gang related crime while in a guided tour group in Europe is very very low. More likely are the typical low level street scams that rely on distraction, misdirection, and pickpocketing.

[theJanitor]

Sounds more like she brought her purse with her to do something before dinner, then brought it with her to dinner instead of putting it back in her room, forgot to take it with her after she finished dinner, and then went back into her cabin where her purse was nowhere to be found, and then in a moment of panic assumed someone stole it.

No. I'm confident that's not the case.

It;s easy enough to deal with someone stealing your purse. So I'm trying to cover all the bases, and not disregard anything that might happen next

[Flamingo]

Was the door kicked in?


If not here is a good possibility that one of the crew members took it, and when it became known to ship security there was a heightened possibility of a search of the crew berthing areas. There are not a lot of "good" hiding places on a ship, especially if the security has been there for a while.

It would be interesting to see if there are security cameras of the hallways. I would be shocked if there wasn't.

[theJanitor]

Was the door kicked in?


If not here is a good possibility that one of the crew members took it, and when it became known to ship security there was a heightened possibility of a search of the crew berthing areas. There are not a lot of "good" hiding places on a ship, especially if the security has been there for a while.

It would be interesting to see if there are security cameras of the hallways. I would be shocked if there wasn't.

Seems as if someone with access, entered the room. Your scenario is where my head is, at the moment. They haven't allowed her to see camera footage yet

eta: she just said that when they get to the next port, she will likely not return to the ship, as she feels unsafe

[TGS]

She's Hong Kong Chinese, and not particularly versed in dealing with authorities, especially in a foreign country. so I'[m trying to help her work her way through this from here

Is she an American citizen of HK descent, or actually a Hong Konger?

[theJanitor]

Is she an American citizen of HK descent, or actually a Hong Konger?

She has American Citizenship. My post was ill-worded, as I was trying to give some context to her communication skills and knowledge of the governmental systems abroad

[RoyGBiv]

Wouldn't hurt to put a lock on her credit files with Equifax, Transunion and Experian...
If she has a credit monitoring service, she may be able to do it all through them with a single request.
If she does not have a service, it may be a good time to sign up for one for at least a half year.

YMMV, but, I would still be threatening to file a report in the next port, if for no other reason than to leverage a look at the security video.
I'm not familiar with maritime investigations/procedures, but, I suspect it could cause a very expensive delay to the cruise line if the local authorities decide to investigate... ??
Also.... If other theft occurred and was reported, this would add impetus for further investigation.

#BackToMyLaneNow

[TGS]

She has American Citizenship. My post was ill-worded, as I was trying to give some context to her communication skills and knowledge of the governmental systems abroad

Assuming she's travelling on a US passport, there is no need to report it lost or stolen as long as it's in her physical custody. There is no reason to visit the nearest American consulate or embassy, as they will just refer her to file a police report. If she runs into financial trouble because of her cards being locked while she's overseas, they can help her receive money sent by relatives from stateside.

Her identity can be considered compromised and she should freeze her credit through the 3 major credit bureaus and/or enroll in a commercial credit monitoring service. If she banks with a physical bank with branches you can walk into, she should inquire with her bank to prevent withdrawals from her account. Passport card fraud is rampant right now, used by imposters to remove money from bank accounts, and the rings are kind of a travelling circus so her identity could be used at any of her given banks branches nationwide, not just her local one.

There's really no reason to escalate this with the police. It was supposedly stolen, and then recovered with everything intact. There's no effort that needs to be spent on that by the police.

Tell her to enjoy her trip, most of all!

[theJanitor]

Thanks @TGS. She had no need to bring her bag around the ship, as everything is comped, or on a tab. This is also the reason why she only had her cell phone in her pocket and not in her purse. Hence my confidence that the bag was in her room. Both she and her sister were following similar protocol, so I'm even more certain she didn't leave the bag somewhere on the various decks

I do believe it was the threat of involving the police, and asking for security footage that likely persuaded the thief to relinquish the bag and contents. The ship has a sailing schedule and delays would be very difficult to manage.

She is hinting that when the ship gets into port tomorrow she might abandon the cruise, as she feels unsafe. I don't know if more formal complaints or reports would help her get a refund. She will have to figure out lodging and travel back to the states on her own, and at her own expense.