Julian Bustamante
Sexual Assault Against A Child
Carnival Cruise Lines August 7, 1989
Julian Bustamante
Event Date: August 7, 1989
Bruise: Arrested For Sexual Assault Of Child
Bruise Location:
Age: 32
Home Town: Columbia
Cruise Line: Carnival Cruise Line
Cruise Ship:
Details:
Julian Bustamante, cruise line janitor and father of two, was convicted of raping a 14-year-old girl on the floor of a ship's pantry. He had been represented by federal public defender Hector Flores.
The girl had been in an elevator, was pulled from it by Bustamante, 32, just moments before the ship was to dock in Miami, ending what had been a memorable cruise for the family, up to that point.
Bustamante insisted the incident was merely a spontaneous romantic interlude, but the six-man, six-woman jury found otherwise. Perhaps the tipping point was the fact that Bustamante testified on the stand in Spanish using an interpreter.
If he didn't know English well enough to testify in the native language of the girl, how did he converse with the Georgia girl, develop a rapport with her and then get her consent to sex?
The jury deliberated for about six hours in a Fort Lauderdale, Florida federal court before finding Bustamante guilty on all three charges: rape, kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor.
The victim and her twin sister appeared in court, having traveled in from the home in rural Georgia.
The girls testified their family cruise to the Bahamas turned into a nightmare when a ship's crewman forced one of them into a pantry and raped her.
The alleged victim, a ninth-grader, junior high drum major and gospel singer, looked across the courtroom when asked to identify her attacker. "It's the man in the pale green shirt," she said.
Bustamante was sentenced to to 30 years in prison. Since his conviction, he has been housed at the FCI Allenwood, The Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) - Low, is part of the Allenwood Federal Correctional Complex (FCC) located in White Deer, Pennsylvania.
FCI Allenwood is situated in the foothills of the northern Allegheny Mountains. It is located 2 miles north of Allenwood on U.S. Route 15; 11 miles south of Williamsport; and 197 miles north of Washington, DC.
Bustamante's scheduled parole date is October 19, 2015.
It is interesting to note, that in a February 03, 2000 article published by the Miami New Times, Bob Dickinson is quoted as saying he is "proud no employee has been successfully prosecuted for rape."
This, 11 years after Bustamante was convicted of raping child aboard a Carnival Cruise Lines' ship. It shines the light on the propaganda the industry thrusts at the public in an effort to preserve their profits.
