Husband charged with murder of wife on MSC Seascape cruise ship leaving Galveston
Susan Watford, 31, was allegedly beaten and strangled by her husband Jason aboard the MSC Seascape hours after it left Galveston. Her mother had begged her not to board.
Mother's warning ignored before cruise ship killing in Galveston
Susan Watford's adoptive mother pleaded with her not to board the MSC Seascape cruise ship in Galveston — a warning that proved tragically prescient. According to click2houston.com, Watford, 31, was allegedly beaten and strangled by her husband, Jason Watford, in their cabin aboard the vessel just hours after it departed, as the couple's young child was present in the room.
"I had asked her not to go," Dorothy Mast told KPRC 2 News reporter Corley Peel. When she later tried to reach Susan by phone and received no answer, Mast assumed her daughter was simply occupied. Investigators say the alleged killing had already taken place by that point.
Susan had grown up in the Amish community before Mast adopted her at the age of 15. Mast described her as a keen learner with a love of travel who was constantly seeking new experiences.
The cruise to Mexico and Honduras was not intended purely as a holiday. Susan had survived a domestic violence incident involving Jason two years earlier and, rather than separating, had chosen to give the marriage another chance. She had also begun studying domestic violence and narcissistic abuse in an effort to understand and process what she had experienced.
"As she told me, 'Mama, he did everything the court said he had to do. He took his anger management classes. He did his counseling. He did his community service,'" Mast recalled.
Susan boarded the ship hoping the voyage would either help repair the couple's marriage or bring her clarity about pursuing a divorce.
Susan leaves behind three children. The infant who was present on the ship has since been placed in foster care. Mast says she is in contact with child protective services and hopes to play a role in caring for the youngest child.
Jason Watford remains in federal custody as the case moves forward. Mast said she hopes Susan's story reaches other women in similar circumstances before it is too late.
"It's too late for her, but it's not too late for somebody else," she said.
---
Anyone experiencing domestic violence can contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline 24 hours a day on 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).
Source: The Sun