Florida Man Steals $10K R2-D2 At Disney World, Police Say

ORLANDO, FL — A man from central Florida was arrested after he impersonated a Disney employee and stole an R2-D2 droid at a Walt Disney World hotel in May, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by Patch.

David Proudfoot, a 44-year-old man from Kissimmee, stole the 'Star Wars' droid from the third floor of the Swan Reserve Hotel and moved it to another location on the premises in an attempt to convince Disney security to hire him by showing weaknesses in security, Orange County deputies said in the affidavit.

Proudfoot is being charged with grand theft of between $5,000 and $10,000, which is a third-degree felony, and obstruction by false information, according to Orange County court records.

Around 5 a.m. on May 31, a Swan Reserve security officer saw Proudfoot moving a large cart on hotel property while wearing work attire and a Disney name badge. The security officer called the Orange County deputies when Proudfoot appeared confused about the location of the loading dock as well as hotel procedures, according to the affidavit.

Proudfoot told authorities his name was David Rodgers and that he worked for the Disney World Yacht Club Resort. He told deputies his supervisor was James McDaniels. Disney had no employment records for David Rodgers, and McDaniels is based in Burbank, California, according to the affidavit.

Deputies took Proudfoot to the Yacht Club Resort to retrieve his belongings and identification from a storage locker, but Proudfoot led them through various areas of the resort and seemed disoriented at times. Proudfoot located an employee locker room but struggled to open several lockers. When deputies spotted a wallet in Proudfoot's pocket, he took his driver's license out, which contained his true identity, according to authorities.

He told officers he moved the R2-D2 and a gaming machine to different locations but never intended to take them off the property, according to the affidavit.