Sep 14, 2024 - 06:59
By huffpost.com

Theme Park Santa Accused Of Child Sex Abuse At His Home Behind Attraction

A North Carolina man who formerly played Santa Claus at a North Pole-themed amusement park was arrested last week and accused of sexually abusing two young girls at his home behind the attraction.

Bevier Hasbrouck Sleight III, 78, was booked on 13 charges, including child abuse, after authorities accused him of sexually abusing two girls between March 2023 and March 2024, according to a warrant obtained by HuffPost. One of the girls was allegedly abused while she was 5 to 6 years old, and the other was 6 to 7 years old.

Sleight had played Santa Claus at the Santa’s Land Fun Park and Zoo in Cherokee, North Carolina, according to reportsfrom The Sylva Herald. The theme park did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment.

Authorities alleged the abuse happened on the same street where Sleight lives, which is behind the amusement park, according to the warrant. A police booking photo shows him with a long white beard and moustache.

Sleight’s neighbors told ABC affiliate WLOS-TV in Asheville, North Carolina, that they were caught off guard by the arrest.

“He’s just really always been a super nice person. So I’m very shocked to hear that,” Kim Lambert told the station.

Police said Sleight was a customer of Caroline Roland, a 39-year-old resident of Cherokee who has been accused of running a child-trafficking ring, according toWLOS. She was arrested on June 5 and faces 11 charges, including child abuse that allegedly caused a 5-year-old girl to sustain “multiple broken bones to each hand on multiple different digits.”

Need help? Visit RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Online Hotline or the National Sexual Violence Resource Center’s website .