A 20-year-old Bahamian man who assaulted two American female tourists, including punching one in the face after she rejected his sexual advances, has been sentenced to three months in jail as he awaits trial for an alleged rape of another tourist in 2024. Javez “Dunky” McDonald entered guilty pleas to two counts of assault during a hearing before Deputy Chief Magistrate Shaka Serville, bringing a swift resolution to the assault charges even as the more serious rape charge moves forward.
The most high-profile of the two assault cases dates back to September 11, when 25-year-old Briana Bazel, an Ohio native visiting The Bahamas for the first time with her best friend, was attacked. What was supposed to be a celebratory trip — marking her friend’s first journey outside the U.S. — quickly turned traumatic after a pre-booked jet ski excursion was canceled. While waiting at Goodman’s Bay, McDonald approached the pair, introducing himself as a licensed jet ski operator and tour guide, and his cousin as a taxi driver. Both men displayed fake-looking badges that convinced Bazel and her friend they were legitimate service providers, so they agreed to a day of sightseeing, dining, and jet skiing that went off without incident.
Trouble began that same evening when the pair met the two men again at Green Parrot, and were invited to a lounge on Palm Tree Avenue. According to Bazel’s account, McDonald’s mood shifted after she mentioned she had started her period. He became angry, interpreting the comment as a brush-off to his sexual advances, and asked her to step outside with him away from the loud music. Once outside, he accused her of using her period as an excuse to avoid sleeping with him, and when she confirmed she had never intended to engage in any sexual activity, he grabbed her arm and punched her in the face as she tried to pull away.
Bazel immediately began bleeding from a cut on her lip, which was caused when the punch drove her lip into a sharp tooth. Despite multiple bystanders witnessing the attack, no one stepped in to help her. A staff member from the lounge eventually accompanied her to a local police station to file a report, after which an officer took her to a hospital for treatment. In the days after the attack, Bazel shared a video of her bloodied, swollen lip on TikTok, which quickly drew more than 54,000 views and captured widespread public attention. After the video went viral, multiple other female tourists reached out to Bazel to share their own stories of harassment and scams at the hands of McDonald and his cousin, she said.
This was not McDonald’s first assault on an American tourist. Less than a month earlier, on August 19, he punched a 19-year-old U.S. visitor near a downtown hotel after she refused to give him her phone number. Court records also show McDonald has prior convictions for drug offenses and violating bail conditions, and he was already out on bail at the time of the Bazel attack, facing charges for the alleged rape of another American tourist at a beach in November 2024.
Following the publication of Bazel’s account in local media, Bahamas Transport Minister Leon Lundy confirmed what Bazel’s viral video had pushed authorities to investigate: McDonald was never a licensed, authorized jet ski operator, and his identification badge was not authentic. He had been operating completely outside of the country’s regulated tourism services system. In response to the incident and growing concerns over tourist safety, Lundy announced that the Bahamian government would soon roll out new digital tools to help visitors easily verify the legitimacy of tour and water sport operators. The Port Department will also partner with police sex crimes units to update training curriculum for all registered operators, to better prevent harassment and assault.
Industry insiders have echoed the need to prioritize safety over protecting the sector’s public image. “Protecting the reputation of The Bahamas begins with protecting people,” said Astra Charlton, business development director at My Own Water Sports, a local legitimate operator. The incident comes on the heels of growing scrutiny over the jet ski tourism industry in The Bahamas. Back in June, the U.S. Embassy in Nassau issued a formal security alert warning American travelers of risks associated with unregulated jet ski rentals, citing a pattern of injuries, deaths, and reported sexual assaults linked to unlicensed operators.
For her part, Bazel says she has traveled widely around the world and never experienced a violent physical assault on any of her trips. She remains uncertain whether she will ever return to The Bahamas, noting that she met many kind Bahamian locals before leaving that left her conflicted. Still, she says she will not recommend the country to other travelers or return herself until meaningful changes are made to protect visitors from unregulated operators and similar attacks.