Walt Disney World employees in Orlando, FL, who dress in costumes of popular Disney characters Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, and Donald Duck, each filed separate police reports this month claiming that visitors inappropriately touched them.
The unidentified woman who portrays Mickey Mouse went to the hospital with neck injuries that were caused when an elderly woman patted the character’s head. The 36-year-old told investigators that the grandmother patted the head of her costume five times, causing it to slide down, ultimately straining her neck, the Orlando Sentinel reported. Despite her injuries, the employee told authorities she didn’t believe the woman had malicious intent in her actions, causing the sheriff’s office to rule the incident a civil matter, meaning no criminal charges would be filed. According to the tourist’s family, they were not made aware of the employee’s hospitalization until they were contacted by the newspaper Thursday.
Boone Scheer, whose mother-in-law was the woman who allegedly caused the neck sprain, told the Sentinel that the woman only patted Mickey to prove to her 2-year-old grandson that the giant rodent was harmless.
“She barely touched him,” Scheer maintained, adding his mother-in-law wouldn’t intentionally hurt the employees dressed as Mickey Mouse. “It was very minimal.”
Scheer claimed that no one at the park mentioned the incident to them until hours later, as they were checking into their Disney hotel.
The other two employees who wear both Minnie Mouse and Donald Duck costumes reported being groped by tourists in the theme park, according to Orange County Sheriff’s Office reports.
The 36-year-old Disney employee, who portrays Minnie Mouse, posed for photos with a man and wife during their visit to the theme park. As Minnie Mouse hugged the man, he groped her chest three times, according to the sheriff’s incident report. She immediately alerted her supervisors and identified pictures of the 61-year-old man from Brewster, Minnesota. However, she declined to press charges.
Surprisingly, it wasn’t the first time the man has been accused of misconduct during trips to Disney. The man is also accused of having “an inappropriate interaction with a cast member” at the Magic Kingdom. However, Disney would not elaborate on the details of that incident.
Disney banned the man, who is a Disney Vacation Club member, from its theme parks.
“As a result, he was trespassed from all of Walt Disney World property, to exclude the Saratoga Springs Resort,” the sheriff’s report confirmed.
These incidents follow the arrest of a 51-year-old man, who police arrested in November after he also allegedly groped the breast of an employee portraying a Disney Princess while taking a photo with the woman. Disney spokeswoman Andrea Finger released a statement on the company’s behalf, condemning the incidents.
“Everyone should feel safe at work, and we encourage Cast Members to come forward in any uncomfortable situation. We provide multiple resources to protect our Cast Members’ well-being, including on-site law enforcement officers who respond, and are available to them, if needed.” The statement read.
Deputies received yet another call on December 3rd in regards to a guest harassing the employee costumed as character Donald Duck at an Animal Kingdom restaurant.
The incident began when a woman in her 60s asked if she could kiss Donald Duck. When the employee obliged, the situation quickly escalated once the woman began touching and grabbing the 18-year-old employee’s arms, chest, belly, and face. As the employee sought help from a fellow Disney employee, the woman followed her, holding onto the costume before putting her hands inside the character’s costume and touching her chest. The woman’s family tried to intervene, shouting for her to stop assaulting the employee. The employee also declined to press charges, believing the woman may have had dementia.
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