Photo: RAMON VAN FLYMEN / AFP / Getty Images
An Ohio couple was arrested after allegedly forcing their way into a family's cruise ship cabin and attacking two adults and a nine-year-old child off the Florida coast. The incident occurred after the couple was asked to quiet down during a loud argument, according to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office.
The suspects, Gannon Jacox, 29, and his girlfriend Brooklyn Hicks, 28, were taken into custody when the ship docked at Port Canaveral, Florida. Sheriff Wayne Ivey said the couple had been drinking and arguing before one of the victims requested they lower their voices. Hicks then confronted the family, and Jacox followed, recording the encounter on his cellphone and encouraging Hicks to escalate the situation.
Authorities say the couple pushed their way into the family's cabin, where the child was present. "Jacox ends up hitting all three people, including the child, and Hicks was just swinging, hoping one would land," Sheriff Ivey wrote in a Facebook post. Investigators noted that Hicks also struck one victim several times. Jacox reportedly suffered an eye injury during the altercation, though none of the victims were seriously hurt.
The Brevard County Sheriff’s Office charged Jacox with burglary with battery and child abuse without great bodily harm. Hicks faces charges of burglary with assault or battery and misdemeanor battery.
The case remains under investigation, and attorneys for the suspects have not commented publicly.