17 theme park employees among 281 arrested in Florida sting, sheriff says

By Cara Tabachnick News Editor Cara Tabachnick is a news editor at CBSNews.com. Cara began her career on the crime beat at Newsday. She has written for Marie Claire, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. She reports on justice and human rights issues. Contact her at cara.tabachnick@cbsinteractive.com Read Full Bio October 31, 2026 / 11:45 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google There were 17 Disney World and Universal Studios employees among 281 suspects arrested during a human trafficking and child sexual predators enforcement operation, the Polk County Sheriff's Office said Friday.Sheriff Grady Judd said in a press conference Friday that the joint operation, which took place over seven days, focused on nabbing predators who prey upon and travel to meet children for unlawful sexual activity and human trafficking.He said 31 of the suspects traveled to the county to have sex with a child. Judd said during the press conference that 13 of the suspects arrested were Disney employees and four were Universal employees."It is extremely disturbing when we encounter nasty child predators like these who are very eager to have sex with children. This is why we conduct these types of undercover operations," Judd said in a statement. Judd said 32 suspects were undocumented immigrants and so far 16 have been transferred over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Additionally, he said that 24 of the suspects brought firearms with them to the meetings, and nine were on probation. The sheriff highlighted details from some of the suspects arrested. One of the suspects arrested is the head coach of the Florida team, Davenport Titans, where he coaches kids between the ages of 11 and 14 years old, the sheriff said. He thought that he was traveling to meet a 14-year-old girl, the sheriff said. Another suspect was on active Navy duty. Another, the sheriff said, a former Disney employee, worked as a Mickey Mouse character and had a diaper fetish. Law enforcement caught him with two backpacks full of diapers, the sheriff said. The sheriff said they also arrested a Disney employee, who had his uniform in the car, to meet an undercover detective posing as a 13-year-old boy. Disney cooperated with law enforcement, the sheriff said during the news conference, and told him they have since fired all the employees. In: Florida