Key aspects:
- A carnival guest was detained by ICE agents in Miami due to a misunderstanding.
- The guest was flagged because he had the same name as someone else who had multiple warrants.
- He spent about 90 minutes in a cell in PortMiami before being released.
A recent Carnival Cruise Line guest got the gift no one wanted when leaving a birthday cruise – wrongfully detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.
Jose Martinez, a U.S. Coast Guard veteran and definitely a U.S. citizen, boarded the boat with his wife, Tamara Verhas, and several others to celebrate his birthday and that of a close friend.
Everything is fine until Ship returns to Miami, Floridaboarded a Caribbean cruise on the morning of January 5, 2026.
It’s unclear which specific ship Martinez was on, but there were three Carnival ships in the busy port that day, including Carnival Conquest, Carnival Horizon, and Carnival sunrise.
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That’s when a misunderstanding over mistaken identity led to the Phoenix-based couple’s harrowing encounter with ICE agents.
Ice storm hits the cabin
At around 6:45 a.m. on January 5, ICE agents burst into Martinez’s cabin while the couple was asleep.
“[The door] Burst. Three men came in with flashlights, shone them in our faces and gave us orders. “ Martinez told 12 News.
“They ordered me out of bed, pushed me against the wall, and handcuffed me. I didn’t know what was going on. I asked what was going on; it was just chaos,” he recalled.
Martinez attempted to provide identification, but according to ABC 15 Arizona Interviewthese requests fell on deaf ears.
His wife also tried to film the incident to document the traumatic encounter, but her phone was taken away. When the device was returned, the video had been deleted.
Martinez was eventually removed from the cruise ship and detained in a holding cell at the Port of Miami.
He was fingerprinted and questioned for about an hour and a half before agents released him.
What went wrong?
Unfortunately for Marinez, this entire experience was a case of mistaken identity.
The veteran told ABC 15 Arizona that he has actually had run-ins with ICE before because his name is common in the Hispanic community, but never in such a dramatic or distressing way.
According to the couple, Martinez was mistaken for another person with the same name who had multiple warrants for his arrest.
“From what I understand, all of this was based on my first and last name, which is a very common Hispanic name. They thought I was someone who had a warrant out for drug trafficking or some kind of crime.” Martinez said.
He was returned to the cruise terminal nearly two hours later. Martinez claims he didn’t even receive a simple apology for the ordeal he was wrongfully forced to endure.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has not commented publicly on the matter.
Carnival Cruise Line responds
It’s likely that ICE agents mistakenly flagged Martinez while reviewing the cruise ship’s manifest as part of standard customs procedures.
The manifest contains detailed records of all passengers and crew on board, including their birthdates and citizenship status.
Agents will then coordinate with the cruise ship’s security team to gain access to their staterooms. Carnival complied with authorities’ request to investigate.
“We are aware that U.S. Customs and Border Protection has detained a guest as a person of interest. As this is a law enforcement matter, we are referring all further questions to the appropriate authorities.” the cruise line said in a public statement.
It was unclear whether the cruise line had contacted Martinez and his wife after being detained.