Man beats boy aboard cruise ship over lewd remark to niece
August 18, 2015
An Ohio man attacked a 13-year-old boy aboard a cruise ship after the boy offered his niece a "keychain for her virginity," according to the Broward Sheriff's Office.
A. Martinez, Jr., 30, of Toledo, Ohio, confronted and assaulted the boy at approximately 2 a.m. on Sunday. The attack took place in the library of the Royal Caribbean Independence of the Seas cruise ship, according to the arrest report.
It all began on Thursday, Aug. 13 when the boy made the inappropriate remark while he was hanging out with the girl and some friends on the ship, the boy told investigators.
According to the report, when the girl's father found out about the remark, he made the boy apologize. But, the boy told the investigators that the girl's uncle took it too far.
The boy said that Martinez yelled at him for several minutes, pinned him up against a wall, and held his arms above his shoulders so he couldn't escape, detective said.
The boy said that Martinez took off his own shirt, as if preparing to fight. The uncle then grabbed the boy by the throat and forced him face down onto the couch, said investigators.
Martinez yelled at the boy saying that this will never happen again, according to the arrest report.
Then, Martinez pulled down his own pants and ordered the boy to pull down his pants, and the boy did as he was told. However, both still had their underwear on.
After forcing the boy's face into the couch several times, Martinez eventually stopped the attack and walked away, the report said. Martinez pulled up his pants and he and the girl's father's left the library before the ship's security officers arrived at the scene.
Sheriff's officials said that the boy was able to identify his attacker from a photographic lineup. After detectives viewed the ship's surveillance video, they were able to confirm the boy's account.
Martinez is facing criminal charges in Florida for
assault, battery, false imprisonment of a child, and
child abuse without great bodily harm. His bond was set for $17,000, according to jail records.
During Martinez's court appearance on Monday, his fiancé told Broward Judge Stephen J. Zaccor that they had to get back to Ohio for their jobs. The judge told him that he may go back to Ohio, but he has to come back.
Zaccor told Martinez that if he didn't come back the easy way, he'd come back the hard way, the Sun Sentinel reported.
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