CEO accused of having smothered Man and threatened to kill him on a cruise ship on a dancing incident with bare feet

The CEO of a California -based financial service company faces an accusation of federal assault for having allegedly suffocated a man while he was on a cruise ship Virgin Voyages.

The incident occurred early Monday morning in international waters on the resilient Lady cruise ship, according to a federal criminal complaint.

Authorities allege that Kenneth Degiorgio, CEO of First American Financial Corporation, suffocated a male victim following an incident that involved the wife of Degiorgio, Nichol Degiorgio.

A spokesperson for the Degiorgio legal team said that he was protecting his wife.

“Mr. Degiorgio responded to the actions of an individual who harassed his wife, making her feel threatened and intimidated,” the spokesman said in a statement on Thursday.

The complaint alleges that the victim, identified by the initials MA, dancing barefoot on the dance floor in the ship on the rock of rocks when Degiorgio’s wife asked her to put her shoes.

The wife told the police she had said to the victim: “Listen, we are all adults here, can you put your shoes?” The victim would have replied by cursing him and bunching his middle finger, said the complaint.

Security images have captured the incident and showed Degiorgio standing, heading for the victim and stifling the man, according to the complaint.

He says that the victim tripped “under the physical control of Degiorgio”.

The victim said Degiorgio “had used a lot of strength” and that he had the impression that his “throat was going to be snatched,” said the document. The man allegedly allegedly during the Degiorgio assault said, “I’m going to kill you.”

Degiorgio was ordered confined in his room until the ship arrived in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The authorities met the ship on Tuesday. Degiorgio’s wife told the authorities that she shouldn’t tell the man to put shoes and that he had never touched her.

The legal team representing Degiorgio, which has been CEO of the company since February 2022, said that it is impatiently waiting to be absolved of any reprehensible act.