Disney tourist arrested for refusing temperature check

Suspect claims he should not have been thrown out of property since he paid $15,000 for holiday

A tourist was arrested on charges of trespassing at Walt Disney World Resort in Florida after allegedly bypassing a temperature check and then refusing to leave when asked by police, claiming he was entitled to stay since he had spent $15,000 on the trip.

Kelly Sills, 47, from Baton Rouge in Louisiana, was detained outside the Boathouse restaurant at Disney Springs, a shopping and dining complex within the Orlando resort.

The incident took place on 13 February although video footage of the incident was only released last week by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.

The video shows Mr Sills refusing to leave the Disney property when confronted. He is heard saying “I spent $15,000 to come here” after police told him that he was trespassing, having apparently avoided the temperature screening.

The arrest report said police and the Disney Springs security manager told Mr Sills that he was “no longer welcome at the park”.

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However, Mr Sills apparently had a change of heart as he was being thrown out. “Will you take my temperature before you kick me out,” he was heard saying in body camera footage recorded by one of the officers present.

During the incident, he was also heard claiming that he was a Disney stockholder – claims that could not be established since Mr Sills’ lawyer didn’t speak with the media when asked about his client.

In the video, Mr Sills – who was said to be staying at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa – was heard saying: “I paid $15,000. You can’t trespass me for paying $15,000.”

One woman was overheard saying: “All you had to do was get temperature checked. That’s it.”

Andrea Finger, a spokesperson for the resort, said most guests follow the company’s Covid-19 safety guidelines, including wearing masks, maintaining social distancing and getting their temperatures checked.

“Millions of guests visit our theme parks each year, and in rare instances when things of this nature occur, we hold them accountable,” she said in a statement.

However, this is the latest in a spate of Disney employers having to deal with people who don’t follow Covid-19 rules.

The arrest report for Mr Sills said that previously one man had spat at a Disney employee when he was asked to cover his face.

Mr Sills is scheduled to appear in a central Florida court on Monday.