Newsdata · Miami-Dade

Florida mom, girl allegedly stole dozens of pins from Disney Springs store, deputies say

A Florida mom and her young daughter were arrested at Disney Springs for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars of Disney merchandise, including dozens of collectible pins, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Office. Ivette Perez was arrested under suspicion of grand theft and contributing to the delinquency of a minor. According to the Orange County arrest report, the alleged heist happened roughly an hour before Disney Springs closed on Monday, April 13. Ivette Perez and her daughter were at the Disney Pin Traders shop at Disney Springs, when a Disney cast member noticed a young girl "scooping pins into her bag." That cast member estimated she saw the girl take roughly 15 pins, while another cast member said it was closer to 40 pins, the report said. The mother-daughter duo then left the store without paying for any of the pins, the report said. Deputies said the two had more than $2,000 worth of alleged stolen items with them. According to the report, Perez told deputies that she knew her daughter was stealing items and that she did not have enough money to pay for them. "She advised me post-MIranda that she knew (redacted) was stealing the product as her daughter did not have the money to purchase that many items. She did not want to intervene and instead contributed, aided, and abetted to the thefts by allowing (redacted) to keep the stolen items," the report said. Ivette reportedly had the stolen items in her possession. She also reportedly talked about the stolen items in text messages to her daughter, the report said. Deputies said Perez voluntarily showed the deputy text messages, which showed her texting her daughter that she needed to hurry up. "She advised (redacted) to return to the car so that they would not be discovered holding all the bags," the report said. Deputies did not list out every item allegedly found in the pair's possession. Perez has pleaded not guilty to the charges, according to online court records. FOX 35 reached out late Monday to the public defenders office to see if they had a comment on behalf of Perez. The report said Perez was already on probation for an unrelated charge out of Miami-Dade County.