James Dickson Bell II
James Bell was director of a cruise line and owner of a company that financed cruise lines. Bell was director of Dolphin Cruise Line, owner of the Dolphin IV and also the SeaBreeze ships out of Miami. James Dickson Bell II was a native of Akron Ohio. He and his wife lived the high life in an 18-room mansion, were members of the country club as well-connected socialites. In 1977, police would learn terrible things happened in an apartment at the hands of a local socialite.
He picked up poor kids off the street, luring them with the money that kept him in high society, offering $5 to $15 to the child, if they would just come visit with him. When police arrested Bell, he had over 1500 pornographic images hidden in his closet. The children had been lured to the apartment, stipped naked and photographed. Pictures showed the children having sex with Bell as well. Children were as young as 3, 6 and 7. Police say that some of Bell's high society friends came to the apartment to photograph the children too, but none were ever charged. All along, Bell was married and had two little girls at home.
The child molester was sentenced to 25 years in prison, but due to the influence his high priced friends had, he was able to get out prison in only three years and nine months at his first parole hearing in May 1981.
By 1998 police had been tipped off that Bell and a woman, Tina Marie Oakley, 28, who worked as a babysitter for various families were taking children to motel rooms. He would sexually assault them while she took photographs of the sexual assaults.
In one case, Oakley, who had two sons of her own, had been offering to babysit free of charge, a little 7-year-old girl who lived with her poor grandmother. The grandmother had custody after the parents abandoned her and her two siblings. Oakley would take the take little girl to Disneyworld and buy her toys. But, then the little girl began meeting Bell at the Feros Court Motel, room #18, 338 S. Federal Highway, in Dania Beach. Bell sexually assaulted her while Oakley took photos with a Polaroid camera.
The little girl told her brother she didn't want to go with Oakley anymore. Puzzled, the boy talked to their grandmother and the little girl unfolded the horrors that went on in room #18.
James Dickson Bell II, CEO of Dolphin Cruise Line was convicted on 17 counts sexual assault against a child in Florida and sentenced to three life terms in prison, plus 30 years. Police had accumulated the photographs of dozens of children he had molested.
The rest of the case is here
Cruise Ship Sex Offenders
Cruise Ship Passenger Sex Offenders
Cruise Ship Crewmember Sex Offenders
