POLK COUNTY, Fla. (WOFL FOX 35 ORLANDO) -
A retired Air Force sergeant who told detectives he works at Disney World's Animal Kingdom and a man who said he "spends time at theme parks" were arrested Tuesday and face child porn charges.
The Polk County Sheriff's Office arrested Thomas Andrew Wheeler, 46, of Davenport and Edward Joseph Freiberger, 67, of Clermont in Polk County after tips led to an investigation.
Wheeler told detectives he is a retired Air Force master sergeant who works as a security guard at Disney's Animal Kingdom. Deputies say he confessed to viewing child porn for several years out of curiosity and because of the "innocence" of the children.
Freiberger told authorities he is unemployed and "spends time at theme parks." The Sheriff's Office said he claimed he didn't know it was illegal to download child porn. Authorities also removed 15 high-powered rifles, shotguns and handguns from Freiberger's residence.
"The graphic images discovered in this investigation were not just images of children without clothes. These images are horrific displays of children..." Sheriff Grady Judd said. "Our agency, working with other ICAC partners, will continue to actively investigate anyone participating in this despicable victimization of children, and when we find them, they will go to jail."
