Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more information contact:
Mark Jacobs
914-382-7539
New York Resident Removed from Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship
for Criticizing Art Auction Practices
(Oslo, Norway — 28 July 2009) Mark Jacobs, 41, U.S. citizen and resident of Garrison returns to New York after Royal Caribbean forcibly removed him from its Jewel of the Seas cruise ship. Jacobs was left at the Oslo, Norway port on July 26, forcing him to find his way to England where he reunited with his family today for their scheduled return flight to JFK airport. His wife, Elena Pousada, and his two children, Jessica, 15, and Ben, 12, stayed on board in order not to have to pay extra to return to England.
Park West Galleries runs art auctions on over 80 cruise ships working as a contractor for a variety of cruise lines. On this particular 12-day cruise, Park West is running three art auctions on days when the ship is at sea in international waters. Jacobs attended the first auction on July 18, and became concerned that the claims of the auctioneer might not be wholly accurate. Using on-line searching, he found that there were lawsuits and class action suits in addition to many individual stories regarding people being duped by Park West. Jacobs says, "Even though I have never bid at a Park West auction, I became concerned for my fellow vacationers. When I heard there would be two more auctions, I felt I had to let people know about Park West's track record."
On July 25, Jacobs compiled information from on-line sources and drew up a one-page fact sheet (*see below). "I wanted people to know about the lawsuits and accusations of forgery, fraud and inflated valuations so that they could decide for themselves before bidding. I also wanted them to understand that typical consumer protection laws might not apply in international waters," said Jacobs. He printed about 50 copies and distributed these to registered bidders prior to the second auction.
Later that day, Jacobs was summoned to a meeting with the ship's Hotel Director Rodney Darwin and Staff Captain Aladin Hafez. He was told that he would be removed from the ship on the following day at the next stop, Oslo, Norway.
Jacobs said "I was quite surprised, especially since they could point to no rule I had broken. I guess freedom of speech is not protected on Royal Caribbean cruises."
At 3:30pm Oslo time on July 26, ship security requested that Mr. Jacobs voluntarily leave the ship. He refused. Oslo police were brought onto the ship and they informed Jacobs that, regardless of what actually happened on the ship, the police would remove him from the ship at the request of the captain. Jacobs was escorted off the ship by Oslo police.
Jacobs is a teacher at and co-founder of Longview School in Cortlandt Manor.
*One Page Fact Sheet, transcription [compiled by Mark Jacobs]:
Park West Auction Information*
* Please note that all of the information compiled in this handout may or may not be true, just like everything that the auctioneer says in today's auction. The important difference is that I do not stand to profit from my actions, unlike Park West. This information has been compiled from Internet sources of news reports, fraud protection resources and people's stories. Please evaluate and decide for yourself.
There are lawsuits and class action lawsuits against Park West for fraudulent practices in their at-sea auctions. For example:
Customers Sue Park West Gallery and Royal Caribbean Claiming Fraud, Conspiracy and Other Charges
http://www.free-press-release.com/news/200901/1231425629.html
"All the Plaintiffs were sold artwork by Park West Galleries. Their allegations include violation of Michigan's warranty in fine arts statute, fraud, violation of the Michigan Consumer Protection Act, breach of contract, violation of the Michigan art multiple sales act, negligent misrepresentation, conspiracy and unjust enrichment. The Plaintiffs combined purchased hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of art which was later found by experts to either be fake or have forged signatures, or to be heavily overpriced and misrepresented as bargains and investments by the Park West auctioneers and sales people responsible for the sales."
Park West Gallery Faces Class Action for Racketeering and Fraud
http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/case/park-west-galleries-art-scam-park-west-galleries.html
"The complaint seeks damages and other appropriate relief for the Class and charges the Defendants with violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act ("RICO"), 18 U.S.C. Section 1961, state consumer protection laws, breach of contract, breach of warranty and the common law. Plaintiffs allege that defendants operated a fraudulent scheme to target the naive art purchaser by touting that the artwork sold at these shipboard auctions were good investments that would appraise for many more times the purchase price, when, in fact, the artwork plaintiffs received was either of low value, worthless or fake. The complaint also alleges that Park West sold phony appraisals to art purchasers, and that Park West conducted its on-board art auctions while cruise ships were traveling in international waters in an effort to avoid application of state consumer protection laws to its illegal activities."
There are fraud protection websites which describe people's experiences of unfair practices of Park West at sea. For example, if you go to http://www.dba-oracle.com/t_cruise_art_auctions_scam_fraud.htm
you will find the following issues:
"All cruise ship art auctions are conducted in international waters and they are insulated from US consumer protection and fraud laws."
"The auctioneers are not regulated by any USA state or jurisdiction."
"US consumer fraud laws and deceptive business practice laws do not always apply on the high seas."
"Cruise auctions shilling (false bidding): 'At every auction I witnessed, the art auctioneers disclose that they will be pulling fake bids. This practice is called "shilling", and it's legal in most States, so long as it is announced in advance. However, almost all of the attendees I spoke with did not understand that the auctioneer has the right to "pretend" that someone is bidding against them.'"
"No Credit card reversals - According to this complaint, some cruise ship art galleries charge exorbitant restocking fees of over $800, and a credit card reversal will not help you get a refund."
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