(Patrick Spikes ICSI)
Orlando police arrested a former Walt Disney World employee they say stole $14,000 worth of costumes and props from the Magic Kingdom and Epcot theme parks.
Patrick Allen Spikes, 24, faces burglary, grand theft and trafficking in stolen property charges, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Twitter page.
Fox 35 Orlando reported Spikes had entered a restricted area of Disney, stole the items and resold them, gaining the attention of authorities who have been investigating the case for months.
GREAT-GRANDMOTHER WITH CBD OIL ARRESTED AT DISNEY WORLD
Police started looking into the case in August after the animatronic "Buzzy" went missing from the closed Cranium Command attraction at the Wonders of Life pavilion at Epcot. The show looked at the importance of the human brain in funny ways.
You can see some of the material stolen from "Buzzy" above, worth an estimated $6,800, which included headphones, a bomber jacket and his green hat. The entire animatronic later went missing.
Spikes might have gotten away with it, but he chose to publish the stolen items on his Twitter account @backdoordisney, which he uses to post behind the scenes theme park photos. He posted the alleged stolen Buzzy head in a Tweet below.
Spikes reportedly became combative during talks in November with investigators, who booked him for resisting arrest. At the time he denied stealing the items.
During the police search of Spikes, they found he sent pictures of other stolen memorabilia to another employee and his PayPal transaction history had information regarding the stolen items, which included wigs, skirts and jackets, according to the affidavit.
Court documents said Spikes and a family member used underground tunnels to get backstage at the Haunted Mansion ride, where $7,216 worth of items were stolen.
MAN RENTS BILLBOARD TO APPLY FOR JOB AT DISNEY WORLD
Spikes received about $30,000 from two people on PayPal between July and September. One of the buyers told police he sent Spikes $9,000 for 18 items. His name wasn't included in the report after he cooperated with investigators.
After bonding out of jail, Spikes continued to joke about the arrest and his jail conditions Friday on Twitter, and deleted the account on Sunday.
Police are still trying to locate all of the stolen items.
