Woman who went missing from Royal Caribbean Singapore cruise assumed dead, says family
The ship authorities have finally handed over CCTV footage of Reeta Sahani jumping off board, to her family. (Photo Credit: CruiseMapper)
After 24 hours of mystery hunting, Vivek Sahani's mother is now assumed dead after the Royal Caribbean Singapore cruise shared footage of her final moments with the family.
What
The authorities of the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Spectrum of the Seas, have finally shared the CCTV footage of what is presumed to be the final moments of Reeta Sahani before she was reported missing. Sahani was the mother of Goila Butter Chicken co-founder Vivek Sahani, and his Melbourne-based brother Apoorv.
Thank you for showing your overwhelming support in this time of distress for my family & I will forever be grateful. The cruise liner finally did share the footage with us & a search is also underway. With the footage we have unfortunately learnt that my mother has passed away.
— Apoorv Sahani (@SahaniApps) August 1, 2023
Reeta Sahani, 67, was reported missing from the cruise, where she was on a 4-day journey to Singapore from Penang in Malaysia, as part of a holiday trip with her husband Jakesh Sahani.
The Sahani brothers shared the news about their mother, Reeta Sahani’s disappearance on their social media platforms, seeking help from the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and the Ministry of External Affairs.
1/2 My mother was travelling in Royal Carrribean cruise (spectrum of the seas) from Singapore. She has gone missing from the ship since this morning. Cruise staff are saying she jumped, but they have not shown us any footage and are washing their hands off @DrSJaishankar
— Apoorv Sahani (@SahaniApps) July 31, 2023
Details of the disappearance
According to the details shared by the Sahani brothers and a report by The Strait Times,
- Upon waking up on July 31 morning, their father, Jakesh Sahani, could not find Reeta Sahani anywhere on the ship which led to him report the incident to the ship’s crew.
- The crew suggested to their father that she might have jumped off board as their overboard detection systems had previously been triggered.
- Post that, the crew did not provide any footage to the Sahani family that could support their claim.
- Above all that, the crew made Jakesh Sahani get off the ship, from where he was taken away by police authorities for questioning, which lasted hours.
Current status
Following an intense 24-hour communication saga, the Sahani brothers reached out to both the cruise liner authorities and the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). The distressing revelation surfaced that their mother, initially reported as "missing" onboard, had tragically died.
Would request you guys to give us some privacy as we mourn her loss. Ironically, today is also her birthday.
— Apoorv Sahani (@SahaniApps) August 1, 2023
I would like to thank @MEAIndia, @PMOIndia, @IndiainSingapor and @DrSJaishankar for helping us out in getting this closure.
After the confirmation from the authorities, both the brothers shared a note on their social media, thanking the MEA, PMO India and S Jaishankar for their assistance with the entire incident.