Menu

Irate Guest Detained For Assaulting Disney World Cast Member

Guest arrested Festival of Fantasy parade
Credit: Disney

It seems that ever since Disney’s theme parks reopened after their COVID-19 closures, the behavior of guests has been worse than ever. There are constant stories about guests fighting with cast members, fighting with each other, and even getting so violent that cast members are forced to clean blood off the pavement. Despite Disney taking these acts seriously and banning multiple guests, some just don’t seem to get it and continue to act completely foolishly.

magic kingdom wedding

Credit: Disney Weddings

That is certainly the case with the guest who assaulted a Magic Kingdom cast member.

According to a recently released report from the Orange County Clerk’s Office, a 58-year-old woman — identified as Emily Santos — was arrested back in early December. The report states that Santos assaulted a 27-year-old cast member by grabbing the back of their vest during the popular Festival of Fantasy Parade.

festival of fantasy parade, mickey mouse

Credit: Disney

The cast member — whose identity we are protecting — told police that she told Santos to stop touching her, but Santos kept grabbing her and pulling on her costume. When the cast member managed to get away, she went straight to a supervisor to tell them what happened.

However, Santos had a different version of the story to tell.

Santos, who willingly spoke to police, said that the cast member in question behaved “rudely and unprofessionally towards her.” She said that, throughout the parade, the cast member had been staring at Santos and her family.

Ms. Santos said that it made her uncomfortable, so she approached the cast member to get their name. She said that she planned on reporting the cast member for their behavior.

Festival of Fantasy parade

Credit: Disney

Related: Elderly Man Arrested, Banned From Disney World, After Assaulting Guest

Santos said that the cast member turned and walked away when Santos approached her. Ms. Santos tried to get the cast member’s attention, but the cast member continued to “blatantly” ignore her. The cast member then tried to cover up their name tag and asked why Ms. Santos wanted to know her identity.

Ms. Santos said that she did tap the cast member on the shoulder. However, she denied grabbing the cast member’s vest.

festival of fantasy parade, magic kingdom parade, disney parade

Credit: Disney

Related: Man Arrested, Forced to the Ground, After Shoplifting From Downtown Disney

Unfortunately for Ms. Santos, another cast member witnessed the event and confirmed the cast member’s story. The second cast member said that she saw the first cast member and the guest get into a “brief argument” before the parade started. Then, at the end of the parade, the second cast member witnessed Santos grab the cast member’s shoulder to turn her around so she could see the name tag.

Ms. Santos continued to follow the young cast member, who tried to back away. Ms. Santos did not stop until other cast members stepped in and defused the situation.

Festival of Fantasy Parade

Credit: Disney

Santos was not arrested or charged with any crime. The police wrote down what happened simply so the incident would be on record.

That was not the only time the police were called to the Magic Kingdom that month. On December 14, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office responded to another assault, but this time, it was guest on guest. The police report states that a man was arrested after grabbing a pair of Minnie ears off of a woman’s head. The man claimed they belonged to his daughter, but they did not.

What do you think Disney should do about the constant bad behavior from guests? Let us know in the comments!

About Krysten Swensen

A born and bred New England girl living the Disney life in Southern California. I love to read, to watch The Golden Girls, and love everything to do with Disney and Universal. I also love to share daily doses of Disney on my Disney Instagram @BrazzleDazzleDisney!