South African man indicted for stabbing on cruise ship en route to Alaska

JUNEAU, Alaska - A federal grand jury in Alaska returned an indictment charging a South African man with assaulting three people with medical scissors while aboard a cruise ship.

According to court documents, on May 6, 2024, Ntando Sogoni, 35, was allegedly discovered trying to deploy a lifeboat and was taken to the ship's medical area for an evaluation.

During his evaluation, he began struggling with a nurse and security guard and fled to another examination room, where he assaulted a female victim, who is a U.S. citizen. He stabbed her with trauma scissors multiple times in the chest, arms and head, causing serious bodily harm. He proceeded to attack two security guards, stabbing one guard, a national of the Philippines, in the head, and stabbing the other guard, a national of Nepal, in the spine.

He was detained and held in the ship's jail until arriving in Juneau on May 7, where he was charged by complaint and arrested by the FBI.

At the time of the assault, the ship was on the high seas and within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the U.S., and on a voyage with a scheduled departure from or arrival in the U.S.

Sogoni is charged with one count assault with intent to murder in violation of 18 U.S.C. 7(1), (7) and (8) and 113(a)(1), three counts of assault with a dangerous weapon in violation of 18 U.S.C. 7(1), (7) and (8) and 113(a)(3), and three counts of assault resulting in serious bodily injury in violation of 18 U.S.C. 7(1), (7) and (8) and 113(a)(6), The defendant made his initial court appearance on May 9 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew M. Scoble of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the one count of assault with intent to murder and 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the other five assault counts. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker of the District of Alaska, Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day with the FBI Anchorage Field Office and Supervisory Special Agent Brett Durham of the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service (CGIS) Resident Agency Juneau and Resident Unit Anchorage made the announcement.

The FBI Anchorage Field Office and FBI Juneau Resident Agency, and the CGIS Resident Agency Juneau are investigating the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Jack Schmidt is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

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