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Man with loaded gun arrested at Downtown Disney
News — By rtribou on October 30, 2009 at 4:08 pm

By Susan Jacobson
Sentinel Staff Writer

A man carrying a loaded 9mm handgun was arrested at Downtown Disney after an off-duty deputy sheriff saw him flashing gang hand signs and noticed the outline of the gun in his waistband, investigators said today.
Several deputies stopped Frankie Gonzalez, 24, on Thursday about 11:55 p.m., but he pulled away and the 9mm Glock fell from his waistband, an Orange County sheriff’s report states. One of the deputies unloaded the magazine, which contained 14 rounds.
A check of the numbers on the gun revealed that it had been reported lost. The report does not say who the gun belongs to.
Earlier that night, a witness in a Disney restroom stall saw the gun, which apparently had been left behind, and also saw Gonzalez return to the stall and retrieve the weapon, the report says.
Gonzalez was charged with carrying a concealed firearm — he does not have the required license — and resisting arrest.

Wow! That's scary! What has the world come to when you have to be afraid to even go to Disney?

That's so scary. Not just the gun, but the fact that gangs are trying to use DTD and WDW in general. There has to be a major show of force. I usually don't say things like that, but you have to put your foot down some where. Disney is where the line has to be drawn! There are just to many families. I couldn't imagine a gang fight on Disney property or a gang trying to make WDW is their turf!! That's our turf and gangs need to stay out!!!!!!

Oh crazy. Thank god I wasn't around there. Gangs mostly hang around Magic Mountain from what I've heard.

I have heard about gang related activity in DTD. From what I remember, that had a part to do with the closing of PI. This is very scary and I am too happy that it was caught. However, I do think there will be a need for an increased visual presence.

They should handle it like they do in Time Square. They need to just have a very large presence's and just make it very uncomfortable for gangbangers!!

When they had a gang problem at Kennywood Amusement Park in Pittsburgh about 10 years ago, they installed metal-detectors. Lots of people upset, and attendance dropped considerably. Eventually, people got used to them (they are still there), and there has been no reports of gang problems at Kennywood for years.

Len90 wrote:I have heard about gang related activity in DTD. From what I remember, that had a part to do with the closing of PI. This is very scary and I am too happy that it was caught. However, I do think there will be a need for an increased visual presence.

Yea, that particular area/end of WDW is starting to, unfortunately, draw some unwanted local attention. I think I read somewhere that there were significant signs that gangs were moving into PI dance clubs which was a big reason they shut it down. Not to go off topic but I wonder what it's like over at City Walk- that area is closer to downtown Orlando and has more of a draw to locals.

Some guy got his throat slit in a gang-related altercation at the Cross Roads mall just across from WDW at the DTD area property entrance/exit. It led to one of my preferred restaurants, Jungle Jim's, closing down.

It is simultaneously sad, scary, and enraging.

I think I would feel safer with metal-detectors.

Rotten gangs are everywhere now. I will say one thing for Disney security, though: they are on the ball! On our '07 trip with some friends, we had just come through the gate at Epcot when we were stopped by an undercover security guy. He looked just like any other park-goer until he identified himself and showed us his badge. My friend J.P. had a little 3-inch folding pocket knife on him that he always carried everywhere without even thinking about it. The security guy had seen the little metal clip that held the knife onto J.P.'s pocket (the knife was inside, clip outside), and he wanted to see what the clip was for. When he saw that it was just a little pocket knife he told J.P. to keep it down inside his pocket so no one would feel intimidated, and told us to just be careful.
Bottom line is that they have a lot more undercover security people there than most people realize, and they are watching everything carefully. No one knows how long that gang-banger was inside, but he obviously got bagged before he could do any mischief. We should always be alert and careful, but I feel pretty safe at WDW.

Jacca5660 wrote:I think I would feel safer with metal-detectors.

That had irritated me when I went to Six Flags Ohio years back, but yeah, I can see the use for them now. Geez.

Mousekedude wrote:Rotten gangs are everywhere now. I will say one thing for Disney security, though: they are on the ball! On our '07 trip with some friends, we had just come through the gate at Epcot when we were stopped by an undercover security guy. He looked just like any other park-goer until he identified himself and showed us his badge. My friend J.P. had a little 3-inch folding pocket knife on him that he always carried everywhere without even thinking about it. The security guy had seen the little metal clip that held the knife onto J.P.'s pocket (the knife was inside, clip outside), and he wanted to see what the clip was for. When he saw that it was just a little pocket knife he told J.P. to keep it down inside his pocket so no one would feel intimidated, and told us to just be careful.
Bottom line is that they have a lot more undercover security people there than most people realize, and they are watching everything carefully. No one knows how long that gang-banger was inside, but he obviously got bagged before he could do any mischief. We should always be alert and careful, but I feel pretty safe at WDW.

There is a lot of undercover security and police in the parks on an average day in WDW. For instance there are I believe 8 undercover people in DHS alone. The only way you will know who they are is if you happen to walk in with one. They enter the park through the main gates by flashing their badge/ID and walk through the stroller gate.

Len90 wrote:

Mousekedude wrote:Rotten gangs are everywhere now. I will say one thing for Disney security, though: they are on the ball! On our '07 trip with some friends, we had just come through the gate at Epcot when we were stopped by an undercover security guy. He looked just like any other park-goer until he identified himself and showed us his badge. My friend J.P. had a little 3-inch folding pocket knife on him that he always carried everywhere without even thinking about it. The security guy had seen the little metal clip that held the knife onto J.P.'s pocket (the knife was inside, clip outside), and he wanted to see what the clip was for. When he saw that it was just a little pocket knife he told J.P. to keep it down inside his pocket so no one would feel intimidated, and told us to just be careful.
Bottom line is that they have a lot more undercover security people there than most people realize, and they are watching everything carefully. No one knows how long that gang-banger was inside, but he obviously got bagged before he could do any mischief. We should always be alert and careful, but I feel pretty safe at WDW.

There is a lot of undercover security and police in the parks on an average day in WDW. For instance there are I believe 8 undercover people in DHS alone. The only way you will know who they are is if you happen to walk in with one. They enter the park through the main gates by flashing their badge/ID and walk through the stroller gate.

More inside information from Len!! He's becoming our inside man!!

Conan O'Brien just covered this story in his monologue and said the man referred to his gun as "his extremely fast-pass"

Also, those undercover security in the parks look like any other guest/tourist at the park. A castmember recounted a tale that someone in the park shop-lifted and then bragged about to his friends right in front on the undercover security. Talk about a combination of stupidity and bad timing!

mindflipper wrote:Conan O'Brien just covered this story in his monologue and said the man referred to his gun as "his extremely fast-pass"

Yeah I saw that. The thought of metal detectors does really raise a good argument for the future safety of the theme parks. I personally feel it would be a disturbing and eye opening experience since people never think of something like that when entering a Disney theme park. In fact, I am just starting to get accustomed to the bag checks that I feel are kind of pointless... but that is for another thread. I do think that you can never be too safe and if it is to ensure guest safety inside the park, then it will just have to be a small inconvenience to put up with. Will there be people who will complain and be unhappy with it, of course there will. BUT it is now a part of everyday life. I mean a lot of schools now have kids go through metal detectors just to go to school! It's sad to see what is happening to all that freedom we used to have. Although the odds of something happening I feel are slim, I personally could never feel safe enough.