According to the FBI Houston office, the incident happened around July 23 on the Carnival Dream cruise ship.
GALVESTON, Texas — Carnival has released an update following the death of a man who died aboard a popular cruise ship sailing out of Galveston.
On Monday, the Galveston County Medical Examiner’s Office told KHOU 11 News that Euvelester Villarreal Jr., 48, of Rio Grande City, Texas, died while the Carnival Dream was at sea. They said that they have found no signs of obvious trauma. But as of right now, they are still awaiting toxicology results.
On Tuesday, Carnival provided a statement, saying in part, “Carnival’s internal investigation indicated the guest died of natural causes.”
Carnival also said it would be deferring to the FBI on its investigation, noting that it is “standard practice for the FBI to review deaths that occur on cruise ships.”
Read the full statement from Carnival:
Carnival’s internal investigation indicated the guest died of natural causes. Furthermore, the medical examiner’s office in Galveston found no signs of trauma. We’ll defer to the FBI on its investigation, but it is important to note that it is standard practice for the FBI to review deaths that occur on cruise ships. We extend our heartfelt sympathy to our guest’s family and loved ones in this difficult time.
The FBI Houston office confirmed the incident occurred around July 23 when the ship was traveling off the Yucatan.
KHOU 11’s Orko Manna spoke briefly with the Villarreal Jr.’s wife, who was with him on the Carnival Dream. She was not ready to share more details about what happened. However, she described her husband as kind and humble. She also said he was a generous and loving man who took care of his family.
A spokesperson for the FBI Houston office sent KHOU 11 the following statement Saturday:
Passengers on board the ship told KHOU 11 off-camera that they woke up to the sound of sirens early in the morning on the day of the incident.
“We all heard at 4 o’clock in the morning, ‘Medical assistance needed at the Serenity Deck.’ It woke everybody up because they turned on all the speakers on the boat and blasted it. It woke everybody up, and nobody knew what was going on. But after that, word got around pretty quick about what had happened,” passenger Carl Burmeister said.
Burmeister also sent KHOU 11 photos and videos from what he said was the Serenity Deck, an adults-only area of the ship, which appeared to be closed off to guests.
“All they had done is put a red Carnival Fun Cruise advertisement around the cabana and put a yellow hazmat bag over the cabana,” Burmeister said. “They had a yellow hazmat bag that covered the whole cabana, to I guess partially preserve the crime scene.”
Passengers also said that debarkation in Galveston on Saturday was delayed, with some claiming that they saw law enforcement come onto the ship.
“We all saw the ambulance pick the body up. We had to sit on the boat two more hours when we got to Galveston, so they could get the body off,” Burmeister said.
The FBI is the primary federal agency authorized to investigate potential crimes on the high seas. Their ability to investigate can depend on several factors, including the ship’s location, its ports of embarkation and debarkation, and the nationalities of any potential suspects or victims. In some cases, other countries may also choose to investigate.
Carnival announced on July 17 that Carnival Dream would return to New Orleans as its homeport in 2027.