Man charged with murder after woman found dead on MSC Seascape cruise ship

Jason Leon Watford, 48, was indicted on a murder charge after a woman was found dead in a cabin on the MSC Seascape cruise ship that had departed from Galveston, Texas. The criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas says the victim was discovered on Sunday night with multiple facial injuries. Authorities plan an autopsy on Tuesday.

According to the complaint, Watford told FBI agents that an argument began while the pair were eating dinner on the ship and continued after they returned to the cabin. He said he "snapped" and struck the woman repeatedly, then choked her for four to five minutes before releasing his grip when he became exhausted.

Security-camera footage shows Watford re-entering the cabin at 7:46 p.m. ET and the woman arriving at 8:11 p.m. ET, with no other individuals seen entering. The woman was reportedly motionless on the floor for about ten minutes before a housekeeper knocked at 9:02 p.m. ET. After a brief exchange, Watford left the cabin, sat in the hallway and used his phone, according to the complaint.

Ship staff later found blood on Watford’s hands and clothing and a motionless female lying face down. He was detained by ship security, and the FBI was called to the scene, where investigators recovered blood-stained clothing from the floor.

Watford is being held in the Galveston County Jail on a federal hold and is scheduled for an initial court hearing on Tuesday afternoon. He has not publicly confirmed legal representation. The cruise ship, a 1,060-foot vessel, turned around and returned to Galveston after the incident, cancelling its planned itinerary to Costa Maya, the Roatan Islands and Cozumel.

"Mike Echo at level 10," a passenger recalled hearing announced late Sunday night, before the ship returned to port the following morning.