Ex-Disney Intern Arrested for Threatening to Blow Up Cinderella Castle
A former Disney intern has been arrested after threatening to blow up Cinderella Castle in Walt Disney World with a bomb.
On May 16, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers (CBP) arrested Canadian resident 22-year-old Matthew Carney at the Ogdensburg Port of Entry, which connects Canada and New York.
According to Fox 35, Carney was part of a Disney internship program when he made the threat back in July 2019. The Miami Herald reported that the incident began when he walked through a metal detector at Magic Kingdom without setting it off and told the security guards, “it's ok if I brought a bomb in."
An officer asked him to repeat what he said, to which Carney confirmed, "Yeah, I’m going to blow up the castle" as it is “a symbol of the Magic Kingdom.” The former intern then repeated the threat to a security manager. According to the manager, he had a straight face when he made the statement and that when he was searched, two cell phones were found, one that was not operational.
“Based on my training and experience of more than 14 years of law enforcement, I know that a cellular device is capable of detonating a previously place device, remotely,” the Orange County Sheriff’s Office deputy wrote in the filing.
Carney was charged with "threats to throw, project and place a destructive device," and the police report placed him "at large" when it was filed.
According to the report, Carney is in custody at the St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office in upstate New York and is being held without bail. The official motion stated that Carney had no idea that there was an outstanding warrant against him or of the delayed State Attorney's Office filing from the incident.