Any Children Abducted at Disneyworld?

[kidd_freeper]

Consider this for a little peace of mind:

Who's Shoes ID

 

[kaytieeldr]

I don't think Disney would put a child at greater risk by trying to hush up an abduction. That would be worse publicity than having it happen in the first place.

Besides, even if Disney tried to hush up such an incident, does anybody think for one second that the PARENTS would keep quiet about it????

 

[weeyore33]

I do not wantg to be flamed for this but here it goes. I own a dancing school and we often discuss disney world in the waiting room, since everyone knows i am obsessed an love to talk about it... anyways i do have a mom who was in disney with her family and her sisters family, they were in the MK and they both thought the other had the 2 year old, they frantically beeped each other on their 2 ways and no one had her, they did not know exactly how long she was missing but they knew it had to be about 10 minutes, the gates to the MK were NOT locked down, but they were taken to a security room inside the park and they were all told to look a the screens, (cameras all over the park) they said to look for her shoes... the dad spotted her with a man and a woman, heading for the gates (exit) they called security, they were stopped, the parents got their daughter back, new clothes on, baseball hat, and she had been given a shot to make her sleepy. This mom had no reason to make this story up, she was crying and said it was the worst day of her families life, she said that the disney security was excellent, but the first defense needs to come from the parents, just because it is "the happiest place on earth" doesn't mean that preditors will stay away, they are everywhere, and disney is basically a candy store for them, we lost our 6yo in epcot for 25 minutes and i thought i was going to die, if only we could sew their clothes to ours there. it only takes 1 second for our kids to wander off or dissapear, it takes a lot longer to find them, I love Disney, but dont be fooled into a false sense of security. sorry this is so long!

 

[BeckWhy]

Now I don't remember if it was WDW or USF but when I was younger I had heard some CMs and Security Guards talking about a stroller they found near the front entrance (now that I think about it, it must have be USF) with a baby in it.

 

[lillygator]

I would honestly hope nothing would ever happen there but you never know.

We were at MK last week on a tour and our 3 year old was walking and up by the CM, my DH was a wreck when he couldn't see her over the crowds.

 

[madalex]

I do not wantg to be flamed for this but here it goes. I own a dancing school and we often discuss disney world in the waiting room, since everyone knows i am obsessed an love to talk about it... anyways i do have a mom who was in disney with her family and her sisters family, they were in the MK and they both thought the other had the 2 year old, they frantically beeped each other on their 2 ways and no one had her, they did not know exactly how long she was missing but they knew it had to be about 10 minutes, the gates to the MK were NOT locked down, but they were taken to a security room inside the park and they were all told to look a the screens, (cameras all over the park) they said to look for her shoes... the dad spotted her with a man and a woman, heading for the gates (exit) they called security, they were stopped, the parents got their daughter back, new clothes on, baseball hat, and she had been given a shot to make her sleepy. This mom had no reason to make this story up

No disrespect intended, but given that this is exactly the "urban legend" story that gets debunked on the snopes web site, I question the veracity of this story.

 

[CanadianGuy]

There was an incident in the late 70s or early 80s where a child got separated from his parents and was later found found in the moat around the castle. He had drowned.

There was no presumption that this was a kidnapping however, merely that the child had wandered off. His parents sued Disney. In the end the parents were found to be 60% negligent and Disney 40% negligent (for not protecting the hazardous moat from small children better..).

To verify this story, it can be researched on Westlaw legal database.

J

 

[gigi1313]

just an example of how good disney security is... we were exiting the park after wishes (w/9gazillion other people) and dd was crying and we were stopped by security and asked what the matter was... she told them we lost her little brother... i told them yes, but he's with his dad and dad is smart enough to head back to the resort just as we were... security asked a bunch of questions (what did they look like, what they were each wearing, etc -- oh, and we all four always dress alike in wdw, if one wears a red shirt, we're all in red shirts, etc) and believe it or not, they FOUND THEM! told them that dd/i had already exited and sent them on to the bus stop where dd and i were waiting! i was impressed

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

a "brownie" mother swears up and down that she was there when the snopes rumored little girl was abducted. You know the whole urban legen that her hair was cut, dyed and she was dressed like a boy.
I finally gave up arguing with the mom. There was not way she was going to believe that it didn't happen.
You know the funny thing is when ever you hear this story, people know how the kidnappers got the girl out of the park, but not if the girl was found (either alive or dead).

The funny thing is that the first time I heard the exact same story with the opposite ending. The version I heard was the WDW CM's immediately activated all of their security cameras and caught the perpetrator because they saw him dying the child's hair in the bathroom. It was told to me as "proof" that WDW was an incredibly safe place.

 

[SaraMc]

I worked for Disney for 7 years and we were told that it was a urban legend and that they have a plan in place anything does happen but that most of the time it's parents being seperated from a wandering todler ect.
Think about how busy it is there, how long it takes to cut a child's hair and colour it. You cant tell me that no one would come into that washroom during that time.
Kids get lost all the time, there are plans in place in most larger retailers too.. Its called Code Adam. The stores go into lockdown if after 10 minutes the child isnt found. Gap Inc stores and Walmart use it all the time. I can tell you that 99% of the time the child wandered off to look at something and that's when we have had to use Code Adam.

 

[Chuck65]

I myself got lost from my parents on Main St. in 1972. I bent down to tie a shoe and looked up and didn't recognize anyone. I went running towards Cinderella's castle thinking they had walked ahead of me. Instead they had stopped, and I ran right past them. A security guard came up to me and asked where my parents were. I told him what had happened, gave him a description of my parents and he took me to lost and found: at the time it was located on main st. In about 20 mins. my dad comes through the door! I started crying, boy was I happy to see him! Any way, Disney's procedures for handling lost children are very good. One thing I noticed too, a child got separated from his mom at the beginning to Main St, several parents were watching the mom give a description of her child to a CM. So, not only were the CM's looking but quite a few parents knew what the child looked like which can help in the recovery process.

 

[Niagara2]

Just back and was shocked to see a HUGH sticker stuck to the back of a little girl about 3 or 4 years old. I was about 12 people behind them in line for the ferry to MK and was reading it just fine. It read - Take me back to Wilderness Lodge, I belong to (first and last names of parents) My name is Lauren.
All I could think of is the perfect opportunity for someone to use this to lure that beautiful little girl away. Hi Lauren.. Your parents (insert name) want me to take you to Wilderness Lodge.
That sneaker ID was great - remind parents not to put the names and contact info where it can be seen, much less a billboard on the childs back!

 

[littleladykaty]

ack...parents want so much to protect their children but have to remember that giving too much info to the general public is dangerous...the shoe tags are a FANTASTIC idea and much safer than broadcasting the child's name, parents name and where they are staying...like a poster said before...anybody could tell a child information they recognize to lure them away.

that being said...there are so many dang cameras at Disney, I can't imagine anybody would be able to cut a kiddos hair, change their clothes, get out a syringe and give an injection to a quiet willing child who does not know them...doesn't seem very plausible...good lord I hope it's not!

 

[HalfDozen]

There was a book written on the untold stories of Disneyworld. I kind of want to get it and see what the deal is, but don't want the magic ruined.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/08...f=pd_bbs_1/102-4859703-7244919?_encoding=UTF8

 

[BlindTyldak]

I do not wantg to be flamed for this but here it goes. I own a dancing school and we often discuss disney world in the waiting room, since everyone knows i am obsessed an love to talk about it... anyways i do have a mom who was in disney with her family and her sisters family, they were in the MK and they both thought the other had the 2 year old, they frantically beeped each other on their 2 ways and no one had her, they did not know exactly how long she was missing but they knew it had to be about 10 minutes, the gates to the MK were NOT locked down, but they were taken to a security room inside the park and they were all told to look a the screens, (cameras all over the park) they said to look for her shoes... the dad spotted her with a man and a woman, heading for the gates (exit) they called security, they were stopped, the parents got their daughter back, new clothes on, baseball hat, and she had been given a shot to make her sleepy. This mom had no reason to make this story up, she was crying and said it was the worst day of her families life, she said that the disney security was excellent, but the first defense needs to come from the parents, just because it is "the happiest place on earth" doesn't mean that preditors will stay away, they are everywhere, and disney is basically a candy store for them, we lost our 6yo in epcot for 25 minutes and i thought i was going to die, if only we could sew their clothes to ours there. it only takes 1 second for our kids to wander off or dissapear, it takes a lot longer to find them, I love Disney, but dont be fooled into a false sense of security. sorry this is so long!

Did she say what happened to the people who attempted the kidnapping? How long they had to stay in Orlando for the trial? How long they were in the hospital with their daughter to see what kind of shot she was given?

Again, not flaming you, but I've got a real good reason for that mom to lie . . . attention hound.

 

[catherinesmom]

I'm probably going to regret this, but here goes:

I was at MGM last December with my mother and 3 year old daughter. My daughter was asleep in her stroller with a blanket on top of her to keep her warm. After we exited the park, we were stopped by a police officer (not Disney security) who asked us if we had experienced anything strange during the parade. We said no, that we had not even been at the parade, and continued on to the bus to AK. A moment later, a Disney security guard came to the bus we were on and told the driver to hold position. The police officer then came on board and came over to us. He said that a little girl had been taken during the parade and that witnesses had described someone who met the same physical characteristics (height, hair color, clothing) as me. The little girl taken (the police officer was the one who said she had been abducted) met the physical description of my daughter. We were asked to provide identification, which he verified, and he woke up my daughter and asked her who my mother and I were. Only then was he satisfied that she was indeed my little girl and not the kidnapped child.

We went to Guest Services at MGM the next day and asked if the little girl had been found. Three CMs denied that anything had happened. It was only after we told the manager that we had been questioned and could provide details that we were told that the girl had been found safely.

 

[Chuck65]

That's another good point, "give an injection to a quiet willing child". My kids have had the same doctor since birth and I have never seen them quiet and willing for an injection by someone they even know!

 

[DMRick]

Perhaps people around you alerted security that you were suspicious (with the towel and all), and they decided to hold you up for a bit while it was checked out. Maybe the little girl standbyers had reported taken was your little girl, and they wanted to be sure she belonged with you.

I'm probably going to regret this, but here goes:

I was at MGM last December with my mother and 3 year old daughter. My daughter was asleep in her stroller with a blanket on top of her to keep her warm. After we exited the park, we were stopped by a police officer (not Disney security) who asked us if we had experienced anything strange during the parade. We said no, that we had not even been at the parade, and continued on to the bus to AK. A moment later, a Disney security guard came to the bus we were on and told the driver to hold position. The police officer then came on board and came over to us. He said that a little girl had been taken during the parade and that witnesses had described someone who met the same physical characteristics (height, hair color, clothing) as me. The little girl taken (the police officer was the one who said she had been abducted) met the physical description of my daughter. We were asked to provide identification, which he verified, and he woke up my daughter and asked her who my mother and I were. Only then was he satisfied that she was indeed my little girl and not the kidnapped child.

We went to Guest Services at MGM the next day and asked if the little girl had been found. Three CMs denied that anything had happened. It was only after we told the manager that we had been questioned and could provide details that we were told that the girl had been found safely.

 

[snjmorrison]

I agree with the person that responded who cares if it's true or not. Anything can happen to your child anywhere. The best defense is to make sure that your child understands the dangers that are out there. Talk to them about what can happen and what to do if it does happen. My father spent the majority of his career as a postal inspector pursuing pedophiles; his office would place ads to lure them. They are everywhere, and they could be anybody. He has arrested police, priests, teachers, psychiatrists, and others. I don't lock my children in the house, but I try very hard to keep my eyes on them when we are in crowds. If I see a child that looks like they are lost, I stay by them until they find their parents. My kids are now 8, 10, & 12, so they aren't very young. I was thinking about writing my cell phone number on his hand with a permanent marker.

 

[catherinesmom]

Perhaps people around you alerted security that you were suspicious (with the towel and all), and they decided to hold you up for a bit while it was checked out. Maybe the little girl standbyers had reported taken was your little girl, and they wanted to be sure she belonged with you.

First of all, she was covered with a blanket, not a towel. It was cold when we were there and many, many children had blankets.

Second, as described to me by the police officer, the parents reported the child missing. She was sleeping in her stroller, and they turned their backs on her to watch the parade. When they turned around, they realized she was missing. People standing around them had seen the woman take the child and stroller, but didn't realize it wasn't the mother until the mother started looking for the child.

That day there were county police officers on scene, helicopters flying overhead, and they were stopping every car that left the parks to look inside and look in the trunk.