ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A former Disney World employee is accused of stealing thousands of dollars-worth of property from backstage areas at the resort, according to an arrest affidavit.
- Former Disney employee accused of stealing animatronic costumes
- Patrick Allen Spikes, 24, was arrested Friday
- Investigators say he stole over $7,000 worth of items, sold them
Patrick Allen Spikes, 24, of Orlando, was arrested and booked into jail Friday.
Deputies say Spikes, while employed by Disney, entered backstage areas at Magic Kingdom and stole more than $7,000 in costumes and other items from the Haunted Mansion attraction.
An investigation began in August after clothing from the Buzzy animatronic was reported stolen from the closed Cranium Command attraction at Epcot. The "one-of-a-kind" items included a bomber jacket, large headphones worn by the animatronic, and a green hat. Investigators later learned that the Buzzy animatronic had also been stolen, according to the arrest affidavit.
Spikes, who was a suspect in the theft, posted backstage pictures of Buzzy on a Twitter account he ran called Backdoor Disney, according to investigators.
In December, Spikes talked with investigators and told them he didn't know anything about the theft. During the interview, Spikes was arrested for resisting without violence, according to an arrest warrant.
According to investigators, Spikes sent pictures of several stolen items to another Disney employee. After investigators acquired warrants to seize Spikes' phone, they found multiple photos of items stolen from Disney World. One of the items included a dress taken from an animatronic at Haunted Mansion, the arrest affidavit said.
Disney also reported that trousers, a jacket, wigs, skirts and a tiara were also stolen from Haunted Mansion.
Spikes is also accused of selling many of the stolen Disney items. Investigators made contact with a person who said they had purchased multiple items from Spikes, including the Haunted Mansion dress for $1,000. Investigators obtained financial records that show Spikes received more than $29,000 through Paypal from July 28, 2018 to September 6, 2018.
Spikes has been charged with burglary of an occupied structure with a mask, dealing in stolen property, and grand theft.
