Below Deck Down Under season two stew Margot Sisson has broken her silence after two crew members were fired for sexual misconduct.
CONTENT WARNING: This article contains information about sexual assault and may be triggering to some readers.
Bosun Luke Jones and Stew Laura Bileskalne were terminated by Captain Jason Chambers for acting inappropriately during a crew night off.
What did Margot say about the inappropriate conduct?
Shortly after the episode aired, Margot took to her Instagram to thank her fellow crew members Aesha, Jason, Tzarina, Harry and Adam for how they handled the situation.
Margot said that Aesha was “both heroic and admirable” for intervening and bringing the incident to Captain Jason’s attention.
She thanked Captain Jason for his “immediate response” to the situation and said that are a “lot of captains who would choose to sweep something like this under the rug,” adding that she’s “grateful” that he isn’t one of them.
Margot thanks Harry with a brief message before saying that Adam came to her after he found out about the incident and supported her. She added that didn’t know about his “situation” with Laura at the time but said she wishes she could go back and “be there for him more.”
You can read the full statement Margot posted below:
What did Luke Jones do?
After a night out at a bar, the crew headed back to the boat and Chief Stew Aesha Scott noticed that Luke was being overly flirty with Margot, who was extremely drunk.
“I don’t want any drunkenness to be taken advantage of,” Aesha told Margot. “So I’d just like to see you get into bed safely. I’ll get you water.”
Margot agreed and went to bed. However, after she fell asleep, a naked Luke climbed into her bed. Producers stepped in and told Luke to get out of Margot’s bed, telling him that “she said no”. Luke angrily stormed back to his own room.
Aesha comforted Margot and asked if she consented to Luke being in her bed.
“No, I was asleep. I did not invite that at all,” she replied.
Aesha went straight to Captain Jason and explained what happened, and he ordered Luke off the boat for the night and then met with him the next morning and fired him.
“Last night there were boundaries crossed,” he told the bosun. “There was indecency and you went into someone’s else cabin without consent. Unfortunately, I’ve got nothing else but to terminate your employment.”
Why was Laura Bileskalne fired?
Laura was the second crew member to be fired for sexual misconduct, which occurred on the same night as Luke’s. Laura repeatedly made advances on deckhand Adam after he made it clear he wasn’t interested. At one point in the night, she tried to give him a massage in bed when he was trying to sleep.
Aesha spoke with Adam who explained that it made him feel uncomfortable, and Aesha reported it to Captain Jason, who fired Laura.
If you or someone you know has experienced or is experiencing any form of abuse, please call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service.
Stream Below Deck Down Under season two on Hayu.
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