The saga continues! After making waves for attempting to climb a Carnival cruise ship in Sydney, Australia, we now have some idea of the fate that awaits the alleged perpetrator.
The suspect, who has earned the nickname of “Spider-Man” on social media, was captured on video climbing the mooring lines of Carnival Adventure at the Sydney’s Overseas Passenger Terminal on May 17, 2025.
The dangerous stunt was eventually brought to a safe conclusion after New South Wales (NSW) police officers coordinated with the crew onboard to lower the mooring ropes toward a police boat – which is when the man was taken into custody.
Footage from onlookers also captured the climber – who has only been identified as a 29-year-old man – being led away in handcuffs by four officers. This is a correction from earlier reports, which said the man was 30 years old.
Following the incident, he was taken to the Day Street Police Station, which is only about a 12-minute drive from the cruise port.
Per local news outlet News.com.au, he has since been given three charges related to unauthorized entry, including “entering a cleared zone without being screened and cleared, entering a land-side restricted zone without authorization, and entering a water-side restricted zone without authorization.”
He was then released on conditional bail, but will have to appear in court on June 11, 2025.
If he is found guilty, the man could face consequences like long-term house arrest, imprisonment, and/or hefty fines.
While Carnival has not issued a statement on the matter, it’s also quite likely that he will be banned from all future Carnival sailings (and for those of Carnival’s sister brands) as the cruise line has a no tolerance policy when it comes to matters of safety.
The Danger of the Situation
Stunts like this have to be taken seriously with a no nonsense approach because it could be a matter of life and death. If the man had fallen, he could have been seriously injured or killed.
As the man shimmied precariously on the mooring ropes, he could have potentially fallen between the 108,865-gross ton cruise ship and the pier. In addition to injuries from the fall, this could come with a big risk of becoming stuck, or even drowning.
A scare like this actually recently unfolded by accident at Royal Caribbean’s private Bahamian destination, Perfect Day at CocoCay, on April 14, 2025 – during which a young child fell between the concrete pier and the ship.
Thankfully, the child was quickly rescued – although it is unknown if they sustained any injuries in the event.
More solemnly, another elderly cruise guest actually died in a freak accident in which they fell from their electric wheelchair and into the water at the port of Philipsburg, St. Maarten, on December 26, 2024.
And in this case, the climber would have been falling into the water – or the hard surface of Circular Quay itself – from a much taller height.
Read Also: 10 Worst Cruise Fails You Can Prepare For
Another factor to consider here is that the offender was climbing on the mooring lines – which are meant to keep the cruise ship tethered to the dock.
While mooring lines are designed to be quite strong – as they have to be able to withstand strong wind, waves, and ocean currents – this doesn’t mean they can’t break, especially if they have been tampered with.
If a mooring line had snapped, the force of the sudden break is strong enough to be lethal – and can cause significant damage to both the ship and the dock itself.
All that said, let’s just be extra thankful that the climber was brought down without any injury to himself, the crew, the authorities, or the ship.
