A Virgin Atlantic flight attendant has been arrested in Florida for allegedly pushing a teenage girl after she tried to cut ahead of him in line for a ride at Disney World.
Keith Newman, a 47-year-old British man, was taken into custody following the February 20 shoving incident inside Orlando’s Magic Kingdom theme park, the New York Post reported.
Newman had been waiting in the queue at Tiana’s Bayou Adventure ride, based on Disney’s The Princess and the Frog, when an 18-year-old girl and her friend tried to cut in front of him.
The girls told Newman they were trying to catch up with friends who were ahead of him in line but the flight attendant refused to let them pass.
One of the teens tried to go around Newman, and he allegedly “pushed her back with both hands,” causing her to fall into her friend.
Newman, who lives in Lemington, Newcastle, denied shoving the girl, telling the police that she walked into his hand.
He was arrested on battery charges but has pleaded not guilty.
Newman returned home to the UK after being released on $1,000 bail. He may face a fine or up to a year in jail, according to the Daily Mail.
The father of the girl Newman is accused of pushing called his actions “inexcusable.”
“I hope this sends a message that it’s never OK to put your hands on someone else except for self-defense, especially somebody a lot younger than you and from the opposite sex,” the father told the Mail.
“My daughter is 18 but she looks 15. She’s 5 foot 2 inches and 120 pounds. There’s no mistaking the fact she was a child so for him to put his hands on a child, he was dead on wrong.”
“It’s inexcusable what he did,” the dad added.
The Independent has contacted Virgin Atlantic, Disney World and the Orange County Sheriff’s Office seeking more information.
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