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Sex Arrest Made At Typhoon Lagoon

Deputies: Man Touched 13-Year-Old Boy

POSTED: Thursday, July 16, 2009
UPDATED: 6:03 pm EDT July 17, 2009

A judge on Friday issued a no-bond status for a man who was arrested on charges of touching a boy in a wave pool at Walt Disney World’s Typhoon Lagoon, the third alleged sex crime at the park in the past two weeks.

David Thomas, 29, of Washington state, was charged with one count of lewd molestation, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said.

Thomas was arrested after a wave pool lifeguard witnessed him touching several different boys while waves were crashing, deputies said.

However, only one victim, a 13-year-old boy from Massachusetts, was located, police said.

"He had touched children in the pool," Orange County sheriff's Sgt. Rich Mankewich said. "The dad of the victim did a great job. He was watching his child. He observed what was going on and was able to alert security and get this guy out of the pool."

Thomas was arrested on Disney property and questioned at an administration building before being booked into the Orange County Jail.

Local 6 News reported that Thomas was also on vacation with a 15-year-old boy at the park. Investigators said he’s friends with the child’s family.

The 15-year-old boy is now with Child Protective Services. Deputies said he told them that Thomas has been assaulting him for five years.

Thomas was charged with sexual battery in that case on Friday.

At a hearing earlier on Friday, a judge said that because Thomas lives out of state, she had concerns about releasing him and issued no bond.

With four other recent sex crime arrests at different Orlando water parks, authorities said theme park employees have become extra vigilant. Other incidents have occurred at Sea World’s Aquatica and Wet ‘n Wild.

Disney released a statement late Thursday night about the latest incident at Typhoon Lagoon.

"This arrest sends a clear message that this behavior will not be tolerated here. We will continue to work closely with law enforcement," the statement said.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story.

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