JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Two staff members at a resort in the Bahamas were arrested after a pair of American women say they were drugged and sexually assaulted while at the resort on a Carnival Elation cruise, according to ABC News.
Amber Sherer and Dongayla Dobson tell ABC News that they went on vacation without their kids for the first time from Feb. 1 to Feb. 5, setting sail out of Jacksonville abord the Carnival Elation which is homeported in the River City.
On the last day of their vacation, the ship stopped at the Grand Bahama Island as Sherer and Dobson say they went to a resort that was recommended by the cruise company, according to ABC News.
Sherer and Dobson allege that a resort staff member offered them a two-for-one drink, which they accepted, according to ABC News. The two women say they almost immediately began feeling ill.
Sherer and Dobson then tell ABC News that after consuming the drinks, they lost consciousness and were assaulted by two resort staff members. The two mothers say they had bruises on their legs and tested positive for various drugs.
Dobson says she "vaguely" remembers glimpses of one of the staff members' face, according to ABC News.
Resort security was able to pull footage and identify the men accused, Dobson told ABC News.
First Coast News received the following statement from Carnival Tuesday after reaching out regarding the allegations:
"While ashore in Freeport, Bahamas on an independent shore excursion, two guests reported to Bahamian police that they were sexually assaulted at a local beach. Bahamian police are investigating the matter."
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is joining the Royal Bahamas Police Force on the investigation, according to ABC News.
Bahamian police told ABC News that preliminary reports indicate that the incident occurred on Feb. 4, shortly after noon at a Central Grand Bahama beach. Police have arrested two men -- a 54-year-old man from Eight Mile Rock and a 40-year-old man from South Bahamia, according to ABC News.
Officers from the Bahamas later boarded the Elation and provided a sexual assault kit, ABC News says, and a hospital form from the ship's medical doctor, as police obtained the women's statements.
The U.S. State Department issued a level two travel advisory for the Bahamas in January, warning that there's been an increase in homicides and sexual violence.
Dobson and Sherer told ABC News that the arrests are not enough and are demanding justice.