Cruise ship worker arrested in Alaska for allegedly stabbing 3 with scissors

A cruise ship worker is facing charges after he allegedly stabbed a woman and two security guards with scissors on board the Alaska-bound vessel, authorities said.

Ntando Sogoni, a 35-year-old man from South Africa, was arrested on Tuesday in Alaska’s capital city of Juneau. He’s facing a count of assault with a dangerous weapon within maritime and territorial jurisdiction, the United States Attorney’s Office announced in a press release.

According to an affidavit from FBI Special Agent Matthew Judy, Sogoni was recently hired by Norwegian Cruise Lines and joined its ship, the Encore, in Seattle on Sunday. It set off the same day for a week-long trip with scheduled stops in Alaska ports and British Columbia.

Later that night, as the massive vessel was sailing west of Vancouver Island, British Columbia toward Alaska, Sogoni’s co-workers noticed him trying to release a lifeboat. The bizarre behavior prompted them to call security, who in turn, detained Sogoni for medical evaluation.

“Upon arrival, Sogoni physically attacked a security guard and a male nurse inside an examination room and proceeded to enter another examination room where a woman, who is a U.S. citizen, was being examined,” according to the U.S. Attorney General’s Office.

“He grabbed a pair of scissors and stabbed the woman multiple times in the arm, hand and face,” the statement continued. “He also stabbed two security guards who intervened — one in the head and one in the back and shoulders.”

Their conditions were not immediately available.

Sogoni was again detained and held in the ship’s jail until it arrived in Juneau, where he was arrested.

If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.