A Brookline, Massachusetts, police detective was arrested at Epcot in Disney World last week for allegedly hitting a sheriff's deputy who was looking into witness reports that the man had belligerently pushed security staff.
Det. Duane Arthur Danforth, 38, is on paid administrative leave while his department investigates what happened in the Florida incident, where he was off-duty, a Brookline police representative told NBC10 Boston Tuesday.
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The incident began Tuesday, Jan. 30, at a private event at Epcot's United Kingdom pavilion that Danforth tried to get into by removing ropes, according to court records.
When a security guard told Danforth he had to go around, Danforth threatened to kill the guard and pushed past him, witnesses told investigators. Danforth was described in court records as belligerent, apparently intoxicated and carrying a girl in one arm.
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Danforth got into the crowd of the private event and was being sought by security when sheriff's deputies were called in, according to the court records. He allegedly ignored Disney security, prompting a deputy to reach out to the detective. Danforth allegedly pushed the deputy.
That prompted the deputies to take Danforth into custody, which the detective allegedly resisted.
"I'm surprised," Brookline resident Rich Moriarty said of the allegations. "That's not good behavior for a policeman."
Danforth, who was named "Officer of the Year" at the Brookline Police Department in 2021, did not answer the door when NBC10 Boston tried to speak with him. It wasn't immediately clear if he had an attorney who could speak to his arrest.
