Disney World, Legoland employees arrested in child porn ring

spelling lesson
(Image credit: Getty Images)

This is not what Disney is for.

A Disney World employee, a Legoland builder, and a Disney park patron are among 11 men arrested for having been part of a Florida child-pornography ring, The Daily Beast reported Wednesday. The scheme involved images and videos of children as young as 3 years old.

Per Florida's Polk County Sheriff's Office, the suspects were arrested Monday as a part of an undercover sting operation dubbed "Guardians of Innocence II." The bust resulted in at least 660 felony charges, which include possession, promotion, and distribution of child pornography.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

"Most of the images we saw during this investigation depicted children sexually battered, that we have seen before, which means we haven't yet identified any local child victims," said Polk Sheriff Grady Judd said in a statement.

Among those arrested were 53-year-old Roger Catey, who worked for Disney World as a project manager for the costume department; 30-year-old Legoland builder Rickie Vargas-Garcia; and 69-year-old retired teacher and solo Disney park frequenter Donald Marich. Together they face up to 50 counts of child pornography and five counts of the promotion of child pornography, The Daily Beast reports.

Due to the nature of the materials turned up in the investigation, Florida officials expect more charges are to come. Read more at The Daily Beast.

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Amari Pollard

Amari Pollard is the social media editor at The Week and has written for Reader's Digest, Parents, and Inside Lacrosse. She studied journalism at Le Moyne College and can usually be found exploring Brooklyn, thrift shopping, or spending way too much money on brunch.