A former Walt Disney World employee is facing a charge that he surreptitiously took a video up the skirt of a female customer, allegedly telling investigators he had done it more than 500 times over the past six years.
Jorge Diaz Vega, 26, worked at the Star Wars gift shop inside Disney World’s Hollywood Studios theme park in Florida until his recent arrest on one count of video voyeurism, a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison.
According to court records filed by Orange County Sheriff’s detectives, Vega was spotted by a witness shooting a video up an 18-year-old woman’s skirt. She later told security officers she was not aware of Vega’s actions.
Detectives said that Vega volunteered during questioning that he takes the videos as a “guilty pleasure” and showed them multiple examples on his cellphone.
He was arrested on March 31 and released on $2,500 bail. Court records do not show if Vega has an attorney and a current phone number could not be located.
USA TODAY reached out to Disney on Sunday and a spokesperson said the individual does not work for the company.
The sheriff’s office said in an email that there could be additional charges if more victims come forward.
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What to do if you are spied on while traveling
If travelers discover they are being filmed during a trip, experts recommended notifying the management of the hotel, cruise ship, or other point of contact, and reporting the incident to law enforcement.
“If you’re in the States, that would be your non-emergency police number,” Carrie Pasquarello, CEO and co-founder of Global Secure Resources Inc., told USA TODAY in March. On a cruise ship or in a hotel, guests can report the incident to security. If travelers are overseas at the time, she said, they can also call the nearest U.S. embassy.
Experts also recommended taking photos or videos for evidence, where applicable.
If a traveler encounters someone spying on them in real-time, Pasquarello said they should get to safety and find someone to help them. “There’s a lot of escalation that can happen in a situation like this,” she said.
When crimes like those occur, Michael Winkleman, a maritime attorney with Lipcon, Margulies & Winkleman, P.A., said, travelers “can press charges against the perpetrator and then the matter is in the hands of the prosecuting authority.” Travelers can seek to hold the perpetrator and the hotel, cruise line, or other company civilly responsible and pursue monetary damages, as well, he said.
Contributing: Kathleen Wong, USA TODAY; Associated Press
Nathan Diller is a consumer travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Nashville, Tennessee. You can reach him at ndiller@usatoday.com.
