I wish I were posting this trip report under better circumstances. 1^st of all both my wife & I love reading this site & its been very, very helpful to us in preparing us for our Hedo II vacations. I hope this will serve as a heads up for all of you about to travel to Negril & Hedo II. I hope that we would have all of your support & help with what we experienced, as this was an unbelievable sad time for everyone involved.

     We booked during the LifeStyles week March 10-17 & we arrived on the 9^th-17^th. The group was small but a great bunch of couples and the host couple for LifeStyles T & T (Hank & Sarah) was unbelievable professional & supportive during our ordeal with the Jamaica police & arranging a doctor for my wife. Both Sarah & Hank worked very hard & stayed on top of things to help us out. I dont know what we would have done without their help & everyones support in the LifeStyles group, they were like family to us. They are a family that carries a big stick if youre in trouble. I should say that we do not participate in the LifeStyle but like to be around Lifestyle people as they are generally a fun group of couples to be around.

    Check in was great & a great room (OceanView/Nude). The general Hedo II staff was very professional except noticeable lack of security within the complex. (I think they were all at the Prude side as it was spring break time) Food was greatly improved from October we thought, even lobster was served on Tuesday evening! Regular staff was attentive & the place was very clean. Diving was great with all the regular staff there welcoming us back to Hedo II. These people remember you even though this was only our 2^nd visit to Hedo II. Weather was wonderfully warm with little rain. DeRoy was there, smiling & singing while making his wonderful tropical delights to drink.So, why was this a vacation from Hell? Read on..

    We found out by our friends from Houston that arrived 3 days before us that there was a group of 5 men from Trinidad cruising the nude pool & hot tub and they were not taking no for an answer. After one of them fondled my friends wife and persisted after she told them to get lost. I asked if they reported this to security. They told us that they had and security talked to them but did not stop those boys. During our first evening visit of the nude hot tub, we saw these men hanging around the hot tub. When I left my wife to get a drink at the fountain, one of them sat next to her and started to touch her. She moved to the other side and the Trinidad guy followed her and then she called out to me and we left and went back to our room. The following evening in the nude pool the same guys were making unwanted advances towards several women nearby and we reported this to the security folks. They spoke to the 5 Trinidad men but they were right back in the hot tub that night again. So we didnt go in the hot tub that evening. On our 3^rd evening on the 11th another friend of ours from Chicago wife had the same experience and they reported it to security. One of them even followed my wife back to our room and she wouldnt come out until I came back because she didnt feel safe while the Trinidad boys were loose. Eight of us finally had enough especially after this next incident to see Joseph Smith about security and stopping this sort of thing from happening.   

    During the Tuesday catamaran (10:30-2pm) cruise  we were in a group of 86 people on the catamaran. During the snorkeling portion of the cruise several (4 that we know of) woman had a local Jamaican man approach them for sex while in the water. This person was not with our group but rather a captain of another boat from Sweptaway resorts.  There were about 30-35 people in the water around our boat. (all from Hedo II) I was with my wife snorkeling picking up sea cucumbers, starfish, etc. on the bottom & bringing them up for people to see. After 1/4 hour in the water, we swam around to the back of the boat about 30-40 from the back. I told my wife that I was going to grab our camera & wanted her to swim over by our friends & I would take a picture of her. I only left her side for 10 seconds & a local Jamaica man violently & sexually attacked her. He pulled her bottoms down & pulled her under twice & then told her not to scream, while his hand was inside her and told her what he was going to do to her. This attack lasted about 15-20 seconds before she was able to break free by kicking him 4 times under the water. If she was not an accomplished SCUBA diver & strong swimmer not panicking under water, things could have been much much worse.

    She was screaming & swimming as fast as possible towards the starboard side of the boat yelling; Get me out of the water, now! One of Jennifiers staff and I pulled her on board and  told us what happened. We spotted the man that attacked her swimming away about 50 yards on our starboard side and he just floated there. I asked the staff if I could go out and get this guy and they told me that they called the police and they would nail this guy. During this time a SweptAways snorkel/glass bottom boat on our port side with 9 guests on board and one Jamaican on board. They were getting irritated and wanted to leave the reef but couldnt because they were missing a staff member. They kept yelling at the guy that attacked my wife to come back so they could go. The Jamaican in the water swam toward them but when a staff member on our Catamaran board yelled at him that he assaulted my wife, he swam in the opposite direction again. The Jamaican in the Sweptaway boat then jumped into the water and swam towards his friend about a 100 yards away and those two talked about a minute and then the guy that jumped from the boat swam back into the SweptAway boat & started his engines. I immediately jump into the water & swam 50 yards toward the Sweptaway boat and yelled and the people in boat if they could identify the other Jamaica man in the water because he assaulted my wife. One Texan stood up and said; Hell yes and told me that they were staying at the Sweptaway Resort. The Sweptaway boat pulled away from me and headed towards shore. After about a couple hundred yards, it turned around and picked up the person in the water that attacked my wife.

    The Jamaican patrol showed up about a minute later and a staff member from our boat jumped on board and followed the Sweptaway boat into shore. In the mean time another woman came forward saying that she had been approach by this same guy in the water but got away before he could do anything to her. The whole catamaran boat with 86 of our friends started for the SweptAway resort and dropped 4 people off to identify the attacker. We met with the Sweptaway water sports manager (Mr. Brown) in the dive office with the Jamaican police and 2 other guests from the SweptAway boat. All of us gave positive IDs but the police refused to arrest either one from the SweptAways boat.   

    There are sexual predators in Jamaica that believe that if you go to Hedo II, the women all are fair game wanting to have sex with whatever man shows up. The watersports manager Mr. Brown of Sweptaway resorts stated; This situation is not unusual & can be somewhat expected when you stay there.(meaning Hedo II) This was said in front of the catamaran owner and 2 couples while in him office at Sweptaway. I find that to be simply an unpalatable attitude toward the wonderful people that weve met at Hedo II. To make matters unbelievably worse, while my wifes attacker was standing 3 feet from us. The police asked us in front of him what our room number was at Hedonism II.  I did not give it to them until the police removed the suspects. After about 2 hours of questioning we pretty much were told that there was nothing that they could do about what had happened.

    I also want to say that Jennifer from the catamaran tour boat was with us all the way. She sent the 82 people on the rest of their cruise but she stayed with us at Sweptaway. Thats when the 6 of us went back to Hedo II and told Hank & Sarah (LifeStyles host couple) what had happened. Before we knew what was going on, Hank & Sarah was kicking some #ss and taking names. They had a German doctor lined up for my wife and met with Joseph Smith/General Manager with Hedo II within 15 minutes. When Joseph Smith was informed of this situation, he made things happen. Within 30 minutes the head inspector of the Jamaican police was at Mr. Smiths office along with 6 other officers. After 6 hours of questioning, we took my wife to the doctors office. She was sore & some bruising but OK.

     The following day (Wednesday), the police arrested this guy but released him in the afternoon because of the way the police handled the 1^st identification at SweptAway resort was illegal. I was not pleased and told them that they could easily question the 35 other witnesses (7 of which are Jamaican) and they probably could pick him out. They told us that they would continue the investigation.

     The police assured us that both of the SweptAway employees from the boat had been suspended pending this investigation and probably would never work in a resort again. I repeat I am not happy with this, but the police reminded me that things could have been much worse and be somewhat satisfied with the outcome.  

      With the incredible love & support from the staff & people staying at Hedo II, we did stay our last 3 days. Mr. Smith promised us that in no way those guys could get into the complex. During the night we noticed security people within view at all times outside our door all night long.

    My wife is fine physically, just a little sore now but emotionally. Well, just dont be a black man walking up behind her right now. That happened this morning in church & it wasnt pretty.  It will just take time to get over. We love the Jamaican people as a whole.

    Just as we were leaving Hedo Saturday, several people came up to us that just got back from that days catamaran cruise and told us that they had a small boat around the snorkelers patrolling the area with uniform security personal watching everyone. So if anything positive came out of this is that people going in the future should be safer as a result.

    Will we go back to Hedo II again? ..Probably, but not high in our priority list at this time.

King

P.S. Mr. Smiths office did give us a certificate for 7 free days as a result of our mishap.