Officers Find Drugs On Cruise Ship

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- A cruise ship pulled into Baltimore carrying not only passengers but also drugs.

Weijia Jiang explains who police took into custody and how investigators caught onto the scheme.

Federal authorities say it was a ship security officer for Royal Caribbean who tipped them off that a major drug smuggling plan was brewing on board.

The ship is called the Enchantment of the Seas, one of Royal Caribbean's most popular rides out of Baltimore.  But it's now at the center of a federal investigation.  Criminal complaints filed by U.S. authorities say three employees tried to smuggle drugs they purchased during a stop in the Dominican Republic in mid-December.

Gavin Excell, 35, John Garth, 27, and Kishurn Neptune, 27, have been indicted by a grand jury.  Court documents say federal agents found 700 grams of heroin and 300 grams of cocaine hidden in Excell's waistband and shoes when the ship arrived back in Baltimore on Dec. 18.

The documents also reveal the group planned to swap the drugs for cash at a Wal-Mart on Port Covington Drive located near the cruise terminal.  But by the time they met, special customs agents were already watching.

They found all the drugs inside Shenika Graves' purse in Wal-Mart.  She, along with Loxly Johnson, appeared to have driven to Baltimore from Virginia for the deal.  Agents say Johnson left the store but they stopped him on Hanover Street.  They found $8,000 in his SUV.  Later, Garth told officers he was paid $4,000 to deliver the drugs to them at Wal-Mart. 

Both Graves and Johnson have also been indicted.

In a statement, Graves' attorney says his client pleaded not guilty and she has no criminal record.  She was released on her own recognizance as the investigation continues.

A spokesperson for the Port Authority says it has no comment about the case.