Police arrested a cruise ship passenger in Sitka last month for allegedly transporting a variety of illegal drugs.

On August 9, Sitka Police received a call from staff aboard the cruise ship Brilliant Lady. According to a sworn police statement, the ship’s security staff had caught a passenger, 52-year-old Patrick Hardiman, in possession of illegal drugs. Police and a federal customs agent responded to the call. The team provided them with several bags they confiscated in search of Hardiman’s cabin, including a bag of suspected MDMA, psilocybin mushrooms, Xanax, and a bag of white powder that field tested positive as cocaine.

Police say the security staff searched Hardiman’s cabin after another passenger reported to the ship’s sick bay complaining of rapid heartbeat after ingesting what he believed to be cocaine. Staff reviewed security footage, and found Hardiman delivering drugs to the passenger who fell ill. 

On August 13, a Sitka Grand Jury indicted Hardiman on one count of misconduct involving a controlled substance, a Class B felony.

The same grand jury indicted 39-year-old Robert Hughes on one felony DUI count. According to a sworn police statement, Hughes was pulled over shortly before 2 a.m. on August 6 after he allegedly exceeded the speed limit on Halibut Point Road while driving a side-by-side UTV. Police say he showed signs of alcohol consumption, and agreed to a breath test in the field, which exceeded the legal limit. A criminal history showed Hughes had been convicted of two previous DUIs in the past decade and was operating the UTV with a revoked license. A hearing in Hughes’s case is set for September 22. 

On August 20, a Juneau grand jury indicted 37-year-old Iosefa James Beasley for an alleged sexual assault that happened near Sitka. Beasley was indicted on six counts of felony sexual assault in the second degree. The next hearing in his case is set for September 22 in Juneau. 

Also on August 20, a Sitka grand jury indicted 27-year-old Mia Nevarez on one count of felony criminal mischief, after Nevarez allegedly cut the fuel line of a man’s truck and smeared fish slime on the seats. The next hearing in Nevarez’s case is set for October 14. 

KCAW has reached out to each defendant’s attorneys for comment.