A tourist visiting Disney World faces a child abuse charge after grabbing a teen girl as crowds gathered to watch the parade in Magic Kingdom – in a move that allegedly left nail marks on the victim.
Martha Zapata-Echeverri, 51, from Kissimmee, Florida, was arrested on a charge of child abuse after the altercation broke out at Disney’s Magic Kingdom on Monday night, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said.
Zapata-Echeverri allegedly grabbed a 17-year-old girl during a confrontation on Main Street U.S.A. in front of Cinderella’s Castle, just before the amusement park’s nightly parade was set to begin, Fox 35 reported.
The teen sustained a bruise and abrasion on her arm after she was pulled aside by Zapata-Echeverri, authorities said.
Authorities said there were no independent witnesses who saw the fight, or surveillance footage of the incident, which happened in a densely crowded area where large groups were gathering ahead of the parade.
It was not immediately clear what kind of argument the teen and Zapata-Echeverri had leading up to the physical contact. Each gave a statement to authorities.
The teen told authorities that the fight broke out when Zapata-Echeverri placed a hand on her in an attempt to make space in a crowded area. When the teen asked her to not touch her, Zapata-Echeverri allegedly grabbed her arm and pulled her aside.
The altercation resulted in visible injuries on the teen, according to authorities.
In Zapata-Echeverri’s retelling of events, she said she was following her daughter to the parade route when the teen started pushing into her and claiming the space was hers. Zapata-Echeverri then demonstrated for police how she pushed the girl back with her left arm.
When authorities asked how the teen sustained nail marks on her arm, Zapata-Echeverri gave an unclear response and gestured that she had used an open hand.
In an arrest report, deputies wrote that Zapata-Echeverri “knowingly and willfully” touched the girl in a way that was likely to cause injury.
