Masked men rob couple at DTD

[TSR6]

I wonder if we need to initiate a petition for Disney to start charging admission and beefing up security in the same maner that Disney hired Orange County Sheriff deputies to monitor speeders on the roadways throughout the resort.

They already hire Orange County Sheriff deputies to come in and patrol DTD.

Disney pays them at their overtime rate.

 

[mitros]

Did you go to a different DTD to us then? You've got to be kidding! Out of control? Completely unsafe? Come on! How many incidents have been reported? Not as many as in some small towns in the UK, I'll bet. We were there in September and walked around until the early hours and never felt threatened once. People were just enjoying themselves.

Get a grip! Get things into some perspective! It ISN'T '70's Bronx like some people are describing it.

Get a grip!? No need for this kind of talk. Good for you that you did not feel it was dangerous at DTD. But please let others express their opinion without you telling them to "get a grip".

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

DTD can't have an admission charge any more than a shopping mall can have an admission charge. No one is going to pay $5 to go there if there was a charge. And let me assure you that locals make up a hefty percentage of the customers at DTD stores, restaurants and Pleasure Island. I'm sure there were numerous robberies around Orlando last week (and wherever you live too) but this one got the huge publicity because it happened at Disney. Last night was like every Saturday night at DTD.....Orange County sheriff's deputies all over the place and Disney Security quite visible too. Those of you who say you've been there and have not seen security must not be looking.

I wrote a letter to WDW about 10 months ago in regard to my lack of safety in DTD. I'm 6'3, 247lbs. and have been in Law Enforcement for 14 years. I felt completely unsafe the night my wife and I visited. I could not believe how out of control the place was. And WDW security was no where to be found! It's sad that WDW is compromising everyone's safety, just to make more money by not charging admission.

OMG, you're 6'3", 247lbs and you're in Law Enforcement and you're SCARED at DTD? It was "out of control" and you felt "completely unsafe"? What the heck are you talking about? You need to describe the situation you encountered because you've described no details and those are pretty strong statements.

BobK/Orlando

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

DTD can't have an admission charge any more than a shopping mall can have an admission charge. No one is going to pay $5 to go there if there was a charge. And let me assure you that locals make up a hefty percentage of the customers at DTD stores, restaurants and Pleasure Island. I'm sure there were numerous robberies around Orlando last week (and wherever you live too) but this one got the huge publicity because it happened at Disney. Last night was like every Saturday night at DTD.....Orange County sheriff's deputies all over the place and Disney Security quite visible too. Those of you who say you've been there and have not seen security must not be looking.



OMG, you're 6'3", 247lbs and you're in Law Enforcement and you're SCARED at DTD? It was "out of control" and you felt "completely unsafe"? What the heck are you talking about? You need to describe the situation you encountered because you've described no details and those are pretty strong statements.

BobK/Orlando

What are you talkin' about??? DD is full of gangs, underage kids on drugs or alcohol and prostitutes...What are you lookin at? I've been to DTD many times and City Walk, as I've stated, and DTD is worse and this isn't even taking into account that Disney is SUPPOSED to be better than EVERYONE else...

 

[boomhauer]

Knock on wood, I have never felt unsafe at DTD. Maybe it's because we usually use Disney Transportation.

 

[ChrisFL]

Well, we go to City Walk a lot now and while I'm sure it has its own problems, I haven't seen any and I will say that we felt a lot more unsafe at DTD on our last trip there. Honestly, I've been very surprised by this but Disney isn't stepping up to the plate. They want it all (all demographics intermingling) without providing the 'famed' Disney security in this location.

I think Citywalk may be safer just due to the layout of the area with the parking garages, etc. it's a lot more difficult to make a full getaway there than it is at DTD.

Perhaps they should, as much as I hate to say this, lower the amount of entrance/exit areas through DTD. That would make it easier to post officers at those locations. Right now there are a lot of areas people can go in and out freely, which is understandable. Or it could be done only after a certain hour, so the daytime shoppers would have easy access to all of the stores.

 

[goalie5hole]

What's the cutoff line-the sidewalks? help crossing the road? escort to your car and home? where does it end? Very few if any parking areas (anywhere)are patrolled by police or security. Police can't be everywhere and neither can Disney security.

 

[ChrisFL]

What's the cutoff line-the sidewalks? help crossing the road? escort to your car and home? where does it end? Very few if any parking areas (anywhere)are patrolled by police or security. Police can't be everywhere and neither can Disney security.

I didn't mean the parking lot, I meant actual walkways into the shops/clubs

 

[Jason71]

what a lot of yanks dont realise is that in uk its common to see drunks and fighting in our high streets at night.Downtown disney is very tame compaired to where you and I live,so any crime is big crime and reported as such
Paulh

That's actually not uncommon in the States, as well--say, in downtown Orlando or even a couple blocks off-property outside Backstage Billards. DTD is the exception--which is why a single robbery there can generate such an up-in-arms reaction.

 

[PurpleAlegria]

What are you talkin' about??? DD is full of gangs, underage kids on drugs or alcohol and prostitutes...What are you lookin at? I've been to DTD many times and City Walk, as I've stated, and DTD is worse and this isn't even taking into account that Disney is SUPPOSED to be better than EVERYONE else...

prostitutes???? r u freakin serious????? No, i don't think so, have been over 20 times easy and never seen that..... might just be some slutty looking FL gals... lol ( don't freak, I am born and raised in FL, and I am not saying all fl girls look like that, but alot of them do).....makes me ashamed to live here sometimes....

 

[G8RFAN]

We park in the lot behind HoB often and I've never felt at risk. In fact I was there 8 nights ago where my DS and I played a couple of hours at DQ. On a whim, I stopped by Sosa and picked up a nice Fuente. We walked along the lake all the way to SSR and and back to our car parked right behind the Blues Brothers cruiser replica. This was around 10:00-10:45 on a Sat night. Not once did I think I was putting myself and my son in any danger. I must have seen security on mountain bikes patrol the parking lot stopping at anyone hanging out in the parking lot to see what they were doing at least a dozen times. There was also another security detail in a SUV patroling exclusively in that lot. When I first walked out there, there was an OC sheriff out there, but they drove off earlier. I did not see any prostitutes, drug dealers, gangs, or underage drinking anywhere. Prostitutes cruising DTD. That's rich. I guess they need to study their demographics a little better or else they will starve.

 

[Peter Pirate 2]

Some of you don't see it so it isn't there, that's what the criminals like about tourists with too much pixie dust in their eyes...

Further this is hardly isolated anymore...An armed robbery, kidnapping and a pipe bomb all within a year (and those are just what I've heard of)...Hardly seems like Disney has the area under control. Of course some of you compare DTD to any other shopping locale at which any number of untold ills could occur...You see I hold Disney to the higher standard they built their business and reputation on. If they're not capable of keeping us safe, fine but that's not the way Disney used to be just a few short years ago.

 

[allisonswonderland]

I was there 2 years ago late, in the parking lot and I just felt creepy. Not in DTD itself but just in the lot. I was with my brother and his girlfriend and my husband. I lived in DC for 2 years so I keep an eye on what is around me, granted I am from a small town but I am not stupid. It was the side by the bars, now I have been there in the evening near the shops and di not feel really THAT nervous, like I did that one night, I just could not shake that feeling.

 

[Kaler131]

I have also been to DTD many times and I have not once felt unsafe. Tourist or not, most people know that any time they are out in a public place to be aware of their surroundings. I still have NEVER felt threatened or unsafe anywhere on Disney Property.

 

[mitros]

Some of you don't see it so it isn't there, that's what the criminals like about tourists with too much pixie dust in their eyes...

Further this is hardly isolated anymore...An armed robbery, kidnapping and a pipe bomb all within a year (and those are just what I've heard of)...Hardly seems like Disney has the area under control. Of course some of you compare DTD to any other shopping locale at which any number of untold ills could occur...You see I hold Disney to the higher standard they built their business and reputation on. If they're not capable of keeping us safe, fine but that's not the way Disney used to be just a few short years ago.

Exactly.............

 

[raidermatt]

Pleasure Island, and specifically Pleasure Island, not the Marketplace or West Side, can get a bit sketchy at night. It's a direct function of the types of entertainment offered and the crowd they are marketing to. That's not to say everyone, or even most who enjoy it are "problems". But nightclubs and the like do attract a different crowd than World of Disney or the Theme Parks.

There shouldn't be any question about this. Disney has made some rather public efforts to deal with the problem, including banning a list of individuals a few months ago.

 

[MassJester]

As an important preface, I've never felt threatened or even concerned while in DTD, however I've often thought that there was less visible security pressence than the venue deserves.

Part of my job is to conduct surveys and give advice on security and safety issues, and I think that this venue in particular, but the large parking areas in general present a significant opportunity for crimes against property and people.

That said, there may well be a substantial serveillance program that is not as visible.

 

[KINGBOBOFTHENORTH]

Further this is hardly isolated anymore...An armed robbery, kidnapping and a pipe bomb all within a year (and those are just what I've heard of)...Hardly seems like Disney has the area under control.

Appears that the armed robbery did happen.
General consensus on the kidnapping was that it didn't happen.
Pipe bomb did happen and some kooky kid from Kissimmee was arrested when he put another one along the TOLL 417 expressway.

So take this out of Disney World and put it in your hometown. How can you prevent someone from putting a pipe bomb in a public space? How can you prevent someone walking in a secluded place late at night from being a crime victim? You simply can't stop every bad thing from happening and Disney is not immune from someone determined to do something bad.

Disney doesn't ever guarantee your safety. But there are few places in the country where you're safer!

BobK/Orlando

 

[theantibride]

OKay, I'm a passholder and go there all the time. I've been there during daytime and at nighttime (late, past 2) and have never once not felt safe. There are always a ton of sheriff deputies around, IMO. I see more of a police presence there than I do at the local mall. I'd like to note that in this article it mentions these people were in a secluded and darker area late at night. Um, that's just exposing yourself for a chance. I had to file a report with the sheriff for a lost item and an admission fee will not keep criminals out. Pickpocketing is such a huge problem at the theme parks because the local criminals buy an annual pass and then more than make up for it in the goods they snatch from tourists who have dropped their guard cause they are at Disney. In this day in age you can never be safe anywhere and you need to be aware of your surroundings. If it's after dark and nearby shops are closed, don't go off into a more secluded area. Stay where it's well-lit and there are people. As for a kid putting a pipe bomb in the area, I'm not surprised. Kids take guns into school! People go on massive killling sprees. The thing is that it got found before it hurt someone. As for prostitues, something tells me you spied the sweet young things going to Pleasure Island to party away. I hate to say it but most of the young females (the term ladies here would be a stretch) going into the clubs are dressed as scantily clad as possible and yes to some people do look like streetwalkers, But unless they came up to you and said "hey buddy, wanna pay me a $100 and I'll do naughty things with you" I don't think you could call them prostitiutes. There are far scarier places (complete with actual prostitutes) in Orlando where I won't drive through -- in daylight! My mum works at a mall in the Atlanta area and someone gets arrested at least once a day there for pickpocketing, theft, concealed weapons, and more. And they have the highest safety rating and lowest crime of any mall int he area. The fact is that what you think is safe may not be and what may not appear to be safe may be safer than you think. But you have to use common sense and be constantly aware of your surroundings no matter where you are -- be it at Disney or Smallsville, Somewhere. And walking around a dark and secluded area at 1 something in the morning after all the stores have closed is just not using good judgement. And remember, although you may not see Disney security uniforms I guarantee you that they are out there dressed as the common man to catch people tryingt o get away with stuff. Also if you see anything big or small that makes you feel uneasy go into the nearest store/restaurant/club and tell a staffer there. They will go get someone. I saw a mother berating her child and slapping him across the face at DTD. I told a cast member and they called the sheriff in and all I had to do was point her out and they took care of it. Not even the best security team can be everywhere at every moment so if you see something you need to mention it and be being vigilant and speaking up we can then make the world a safer place..... Climbing off of my soap box now.

 

[SingingMom]

I have to admit, I have felt unsafe in the DTD area - we felt very isolated waiting a very long time for the resort bus. We've just made it a family decision that we don't go late at night anymore. If we decide to stay at Pleasure Island to see the comedy show this year, we'll take a taxi back.