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CCTV footage shows last moments of groom who ‘vanished’ on cruise during honeymoon

Home> News> Crime

Published 10:45 14 Jun 2024 GMT+1

CCTV footage shows last moments of groom who ‘vanished’ on cruise during honeymoon

Newlywed George Smith was last seen alive on 5 July 2005

Rhianna Benson

Rhianna Benson

What was supposed to be the happiest holiday of newly-married couple George Smith and Jennifer Hagel's life, soon turned sour when, during their honeymoon cruise, the groom seemingly disappeared into thin air.

Now, two decades later, George's family still have no idea what harrowing fate befell him that night after blood was found in numerous locations around the cabin, but a body was never found.

And now, after 19 years, the CCTV footage of what many believe to be his final moments alive is continuing to circle on social media - as do the theories regarding what exactly happened to him?

Was it a tragic fall into the crashing waves below that killed George? Or did someone else onboard have some more sinister intentions in mind?

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Or - even more chilling - is the theory that George may alive somewhere...

The couple tied the knot just 11 days before George disappeared. (Facebook)
The couple tied the knot just 11 days before George disappeared. (Facebook)

In the early hours of 5 July 2005, George and his new wife Jennifer - who'd tied the knot 11 days prior in plush ceremony in Newport, Rhode Island - were enjoying a booze-fuelled evening on board Royal Caribbean's Brilliance of the Seas ship.

On board the ship, George became friends with another passenger, Josh Askin, 20, as well as others.

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On the evening of 4 July, Jennifer and George went to the ship’s casino which turned into a drunken night. CCTV from the casino is the last time George was seen alive.

Josh Askin, along with three other men on the ship - Rusty Kofman, Greg Rozenberg and Zach Rozenberg - were said to have helped George back to his cabin after he was too drunk.

They then told the police that they helped him take his shoes off before putting him to bed and then heading their separate ways and ordering room service, although the cruise ship has no records of this.

George was last seen alive on CCTV casino footage. (Royal Caribbean)
George was last seen alive on CCTV casino footage. (Royal Caribbean)

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A legal representative for Askin later argued, however, that a simple oversight in the hand-written hospitality records may have meant that the orders weren't written down.

Wife Jennifer was later found around 4.30am after passing out in one of the ships' hallways, but she has little recollection of what happened after the casino.

With George last seen alive in the casino, it was later assumed he must have fallen overboard, with bloodstains being found on the side of the ship.

Yet one piece of evidence didn't appear to support that theory.

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A blood stain was also found on the side of the ship. (Royal Caribbean)
A blood stain was also found on the side of the ship. (Royal Caribbean)

Bloodstains were also found on his bedsheets, which remain unexplained.

In the cabin, a chair was found pushed up against the railings of the balcony leading to the assumption that George had climbed up and then gone overboard from the ship.

Yet the bloodied sheets remain with no explanation, and police none the wiser even 19 years later.

Featured Image Credit: Royal Caribbean/Facebook

Topics: Crime, True Crime, Sex and Relationships, Wedding, Cruise, Cruise Ship

Rhianna Benson
Rhianna Benson

Rhianna is an Entertainment Journalist at LADbible Group, working across LADbible, UNILAD and Tyla. She has a Masters in News Journalism from the University of Salford and a Masters in Ancient History from the University of Edinburgh. She previously worked as a Celebrity Reporter for OK! and New Magazines, and as a TV Writer for Reach PLC.

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@rhiannaBjourno

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