A British air steward has been arrested in Florida for allegedly shoving a teenage girl he accused of queue jumping at Disney’s Magic Kingdom.
Keith Newman, who works as cabin crew for Virgin Atlantic, is said to have pushed the 18-year-old when she went around him, causing her to spill her water all over her friend.
The 47-year-old was waiting for the Tiana’s Bayou Adventure ride – based on the Princess Tiana character from the Disney movie The Princess and the Frog – when he allegedly put out his arm to stop the girl.
The girl is said to have told Newman that the rest of her party were just ahead of her but he insisted: ‘There’s a queue.’
Newman, who lives with his partner and fellow airline worker in a large, detached house in Lemington, Newcastle, was arrested on a battery charge and has pleaded not guilty.
He has been released on a $1,000 bail and has returned home to the UK. He could face a fine or up to a year in jail.
The victim’s father claimed today that Newman’s actions were ‘inexcusable’.
Speaking exclusively to the Daily Mail, he said: ‘I hope this sends a message that it’s never OK to put your hands on someone else except for self-defence, especially somebody a lot younger than you and from the opposite sex.
‘My dad and my mum told me it’s never right to put your hands on a female.
‘My daughter is 18 but she looks 15. She’s 5ft 2in and 120lbs.
‘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 incident happened on February 20, according to an arrest affidavit filed with the Orange County Court in Florida.
Officer Richard Schorr stated that the victim told him she was with a group of family and friends.
The girl said she was trying to ‘catch up with the rest of her group’ who were already in the queue for the ride, the affidavit stated.
The report stated: ‘The victim said that as she and her friend were walking through the line passing people, a man, now known as Keith Newman, had put his hands out trying to stop her from moving forward.
‘She stated she told him she was just trying to catch up with her group, which was not too far ahead, and he still kept his hand out to stop her.
‘She said she tried to go around Keith but he pushed her back with both hands.
‘She said she fell backwards into her friend. She was holding a water bottle in her hand and when he pushed her back, the water spilled all over (her friend).’
The girl’s friend told police that Newman had told them ‘there’s a queue’ when they tried to go past.
The friend said Newman pushed the victim with one hand, but she wouldn’t let him move her, so he used two hands.
The father, who works at the resort, went on: ‘At Disney there’s never a time when somebody doesn’t slip the line.
‘Usually what happens is that somebody goes the bathroom or gets water and comes back.
‘Most people let them pass. Very few times has anybody challenged anybody, most people wait their turn. Maybe this guy doesn’t understand the unwritten courtesy.’
When asked about the case by the Daily Mail, Mr Newman at first said he did not know about the incident.
But on being shown a custody photo released by Orange County Sheriff’s Department, he said: ‘Ok, but I really don’t want to talk about this.’
Standing on the drive of his home beside his white Mercedes, Mr Newman said that as far as he was concerned the legal case was over.
He confirmed that he had denied the charges and added: ‘It has been sorted as far as I know.’
News of his arrest in the US shocked neighbours.
One said: ‘It must have been a misunderstanding, I find it very hard to believe.
‘I have never met a nicer couple of people in my whole life. I moved in during 2022 and the next day after I moved in there was a bunch of flowers waiting for me from them.
‘They are a lovely, lovely couple. Perhaps to stop her pushing in, he may have said something, but he would never have pushed anyone deliberately.’
It is understood Mr Newman has now returned to full time work.
The neighbour said: ‘They both work for the same airline so spend days at a time away.’
