California mom arrested at Disneyland in front of her crying children
ANAHEIM, Calif. - Two young children were left in tears after their mother was handcuffed and escorted out of Disneyland Resort in Anaheim after she was accused of sneaking them inside the theme park for free.
Video posted to TikTok showed the incident unfolding at Disney California Adventure Park on Tuesday, Sept. 24.
The woman, identified as 26-year-old Jessenia Diaz of Torrance, is seen surrounded by security and being led out of the theme park with her two young daughters clinging on to her and crying. Another officer is seen pushing a stroller behind them.
The video is captioned, "Getting arrested at the happiest place on earth."
According to the Anaheim Police Department, Diaz entered the theme park with a valid admission ticket for herself, but when she was stopped and asked about the ages of her two children, she refused to talk to staff and proceeded to walk. Police said this isn't the first time Diaz has attempted the same ruse – she is accused of doing this four times in the past few months.
Diaz was uncooperative with Disney security teams, which led to the response from Anaheim PD. Authorities said Disney staff offered Diaz options so she and her children could remain in the park, but she refused to cooperate.
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Diaz was arrested for trespassing and charged with obstructing a peace officer's investigation. She was booked and released.
Disneyland's website states children under the age of 3 can visit Disneyland or Disney California Adventure for free if they are accompanying a guest with a valid park ticket.
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In addition, this isn't the first time a video has gone viral apparently showing Disney guests trying to bend the rules on the children's admission policy.
In 2022, video surfaced showing a family attempting to sneak a child into Magic Kingdom at Disney World in Florida using a baby stroller.
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In the video, a family wheels a child sitting in an infant car seat through the entrance of the theme park past a cast member, who smiles and waves at them.
Once inside, the child is seen being pulled out of the stroller. While it's not known how old the child is, the video – entitled "When Disney ticket prices go up" – implies that the kid is old enough to need a purchased ticket.
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Most recently, Disney made changes to its Disability Access Services (DAS) program in an effort to crack down on visitors misusing the service. Guests found to have made false statements in order to obtain disability access at Disney parks will be permanently banned.
FOX 35 Orlando contributed to this report.