Vilborg: "I Knew Something Was Wrong"

For the first time since his wife's disappearance, the husband of a Bay Minette woman missing from a cruise ship is talking to News Five.

Sven Vilborg, who friends call Swede, says he thought his wife was taking a shower when he fell asleep on the first night of what was supposed to be a five night cruise.

"I heard her water turn on," he says. "I was just laying there looking up at the ceiling, and I dozed off."

Vilborg, a life-long mariner, was on the Holiday cruise ship with his wife, Michelle, celebrating her 50th birthday. In the hours before she disappeared, he says they enjoyed dinner and just a couple drinks before calling it a night around 10:30. The next thing he knew the ship was vibrating and coming to a stop.

"I didn't know what was wrong, but I knew something was wrong," says Vilborg, who was surprised that his wife wasn't lying next to him when he woke up.

In a statement from Carnival Cruise Line, officials said a guest on the ship reported hearing a splash, and during a head count of passengers and crew members, Michelle Vilborg was nowhere to be found.

Swede Vilborg says the couple's cabin was on the sixth deck, and the cruise ship's security personnel told him they believe his wife went overboard the tenth deck.

Swede Vilborg, the only person on the ship who knew Michelle, admits he was immediately targeted as a suspect.

"They took three valves of blood," he says, also noting they made him take off his shirt as they took pictures of his neck, back, hands, feet and legs.

When asked Wednesday if he believes he is still a suspect, Vilborg said "yes," but adamantly denied any involvement. He also rejected the idea that his wife commited suicide, saying she was a faithful Christian and had planned activities with her husband for the following day.

The U.S. Coast Guard spent nearly 45 hours searching for Michelle Vilborg in an area 70 miles southwest of Pensacola. The Coast Guard called off its search saying they believed if Michelle was alive in the water they would have found her.

Swede Vilborg says he has no plans for a memorial service for his wife until he has more answers about what happened to her. He says he doesn't feel right having a funeral when she hasn't been pronounced dead.

An FBI spokesperson tells News Five their investigation could take a month to complete.