Latest news with #BrowardCountySheriff
Daily Mail
17-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Teen's 'joke' about his manhood forced Spirit plane to race to deserted corner of airport over bomb fears
A 16 year-old boy cracked a 'joke' about his masculinity that saw a Spirit flight forced to rush to a deserted corner of an airport over fears it would explode. The teen, who Daily Mail is not naming, made a gag about having a 'bomb in his pocket' while sat on the flight 1332 preparing to take off from Fort Lauderdale Airport for Kansas City on Monday afternoon. His mother told the Miami Herald the remark was just the boy's attempt at a joke about his 'masculinity.' But other passengers and flight attendants feared he posed a security threat. The packed Airbus was ordered to a quiet area of the airport in case it was on the verge of blowing up. Broward County Sheriff's Office deputies were seen boarding the plane and hauling the boy off, who was wearing a dainty white shell necklace. Once it was established there was no bomb, passengers were forced to deplane before the flight finally departed late for Missouri. He was charged with criminal mischief over $1,000 and making a false report of a bomb/explosive, according to authorities. The teen appeared before a court wearing a tank top Tuesday, with his father beaming in via a construction site over video link to plead for leniency. Spirit Airlines said in a statement that law enforcement was requested to meet the plane before departure due to a potential security issue. 'The aircraft taxied to a remote location, and Guests were safely deplaned. The plane was inspected and cleared by law enforcement,' the statement continued. The teen was vacationing in Florida with friends and was heading home to Missouri when the arrest occurred. He was held in a juvenile detention center and appeared in court on Tuesday. His father, Phillip Schmidt, appeared virtually to defend his son, according to footage shared by local NBC affiliate, WTVJ. 'I would just like to ask for grace in this matter,' Schmidt told the court. 'I don't believe he acted criminally. He was acting as an immature 16-year-old in my opinion.' The boy's attorney stated in court that he said he 'had a bomb in his pocket,' but noted that authorities didn't specify where and when the teen made the claim. Judge Stacy Ross said that Spirit was estimating a loss of $50,000. The boy's mother told the Miami Herald that the teen is 'a good kid' and was just talking in slang with his friends when a woman sitting nearby overheard the comment. The mother told the outlet that he was held in juvenile custody until Tuesday afternoon. Authorities haven't released the teenager's name, and it's unclear whether he's being charged as an adult.
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Yahoo
Authorities reveal how girl, 5, fell overboard from Disney Dream cruise ship before dad jumped in to save her
Authorities have revealed how a five-year-old girl fell overboard on a Disney cruise, prompting a dramatic ocean rescue by her father. As the Disney Dream sailed toward Fort Lauderdale, Florida, at 11.30 a.m. on Sunday, the young girl was sitting on the fourth-deck railing while her parents played shuffleboard nearby. The family had completed a four-night voyage through the Bahamas aboard the $900 million cruise when disaster struck and the girl slipped backwards, plunging 45ft into the ocean. Initially, it was not clear what had led to the girl's fall. Now the Broward County Sheriff's Office has confirmed that the child had lost her balance and tumbled through a porthole, CBS Miami reports. The dad leapt from the cruise to save his daughter, treading water for up to 20 minutes before both were pulled aboard the ship's rescue boat. 'This family is so blessed,' a sheriff's spokesperson said, keeping the family's identity anonymous. 'It's great to be able to respond to good news rather than what could have been a tragic outcome.' Passenger Monica Shannon told CBS the railings had 'little divots and spaces' that made it possible for the girl to climb up. Shannon was on the third-floor deck at the time, one below where the girl plunged from. 'I kind of see something really fast flew by, I didn't think anything of it,' she said. 'I just figured it was maybe a part of the show or just the experience, but about five minutes later we heard that someone flew overboard.' Another passenger named Chandler previously told People magazine about the moment the girl hit the water. 'It sounded like hitting the pavement,' she said. 'Then this awful scream from what I assume is the mother and then this massive splash.' Chandler said she was with her family when the commotion began, and 'Mr. M.O.B.,' meaning man overboard, blared out over the ship's intercom as it traveled between Nassau and Grand Bahama Island. The passenger said she didn't think rescuers would be able to locate the dad and daughter and told her nine-year-old daughter Harper that 'they were probably gone.' Video shared online shows the yellow rescue boat quickly bobbing through the waters to reach the father and daughter as onlookers watched from on top of the ship. One clip shared on TikTok shows the girl in the boat wrapped in a towel while being embraced by a rescue worker. In another, the girl's sodden father could be seen breathlessly clutching onto a rescuer. Travelers erupted into rapturous applause as the rescue teams threw out a rope for the pair to grab onto and safely pulled them onto the jetty.
Daily Mail
03-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Truth about dad who jumped off Disney cruise to save daughter as police shut down viral rumor
A vicious rumor about how a young girl fell overboard from a Disney cruise ship before her hero dad dived in to save her has been debunked by police. The five-year-old fell from the fourth deck of the $900 million Disney Dream about 11.30am on Sunday as it was sailing to Fort Lauderdale from the Bahamas. Hundreds of passengers watched as the pair were dramatically rescued by the ship's crew after the brave dad kept his daughter afloat for 20 minutes. But the father switched from hero to villain online amid claims he lifted his daughter on top of a 42.5-inch (3.5ft) railing for a photo, and she fell backwards off the ship. The Broward County Sheriff's Office, which is investigating what happened, finally refuted the rumor on Wednesday afternoon. Sheriff Gregory Tony said the girl was sitting on the railing and fell backwards through a porthole, but that her father didn't put her there. 'After the girl's mother alerted her husband, who didn't see the incident, he jumped into the ocean to save his daughter,' he said. 'BSO detectives said after the 37-year-old father found his daughter, he treaded water until they were rescued by a tender that was launched from the ship.' Sheriff Tony said the ship's security video corroborated statements from the family and Disney cruise staff about what happened. The father was hurt as he fought to save his daughter and was hospitalized after the ship returned to port, but police declined to specify the injury. 'The crew's "man overboard" training and readiness paid off because they executed a successful ocean rescue,' Sheriff Tony said. 'BSO investigators said the total time from the child's accidental fall to the rescue was about 20 minutes. Once rescued, the father and daughter were checked out by the ship's medical staff.' Sheriff Tony said the family did not live in Florida. He explained that detectives were still gathering details, but his office released what they knew so far 'in response to misinformation'. 'This family is so blessed. It's great to be able to respond to good news rather than what could have been a tragic outcome,' he said. The father was initially hailed as a hero for saving his daughter from almost certain death on her own in the ocean, without regard for his own life. But the tide turned when rumors that he caused her to fall began to spread, and he was pilloried online by thousands of strangers who repeated the wild accusations as if they were fact. Some even called for him to be thrown in jail, charged with child endangerment, have his daughter taken away from him, and his wife divorce him. This was despite no one who saw the girl fall publicly saying what happened, and no evidence he did anything wrong. Even before police exonerated him, some passengers shared alternate explanations they heard from far more credible sources. Monica Shannon, who was on holiday with her husband and young child, said a crew member told her a different story. 'She said the parents were playing shuffleboard and the girl was climbing on the railings... and as she went to climb up again she flew off,' she told the Daily Mail. Shannon said the crew told her the area was often very windy, and a sudden gust could have caused the child to topple over the edge. Deck four includes a jogging track and is lined with railings that extend 42.5 inches (3.5ft) from the floor with plexiglass in front of them. Indoor sections have open portholes that could easily be climbed out of but not fallen through. Shannon, from South Florida, said she was in her room on a lower deck directly below the shuffleboard area and 'saw something go by really fast'. 'I didn't think anything of it, I definitely didn't think it was a person or a body that just fell off the ship,' she said. Minutes later her husband told her what happened and she rushed on to the deck. Another anonymous passenger who claimed to be near the family when the girl fell also insisted the railing photo story wasn't true. 'I was there. This is not what happened. I heard the screaming and went to help. The little girl was not sitting on the railing,' they wrote on Facebook. 'I was there with them. We were first to help when we heard the initial fall/scream.' Several passengers said the girl's mother was hysterical after watching her daughter and husband go over the side. 'The mom was yelling "she's five and can't swim",' passenger Shannon Lindholm said. Monica Shannon added: 'The crew said the mom was brought inside away from the edge and that she was hysterical the entire time.' Within seconds of the girl falling, the ship's automatic man overboard alarm and the emergency code 'Mr MOB' blared over the intercom. 'It was my first cruise ever and it was pretty traumatizing trying to wrap my head around it,' passenger Nikki Samsill Jackson told the Daily Mail. 'When it first happened, everyone was saying that somebody jumped in and at that point we didn't know he jumped in to save his child, everyone was thinking suicide or too much alcohol.' Within minutes the crew readied a yellow motorized rescue boat and went after the stricken pair as hundreds of passengers rushed to the railings. Flotation rings were thrown into the water, but they were either too far away, or the father couldn't grab them without risking letting go of his daughter. Passengers described the massive 130,000 gross tonnage ship, which travels at 25mph, turning around as the rescue boat raced to find them before they drowned. 'When they were rescued, dad had his arms around his child and he was treading water,' Jackson said. Another passenger, Gar Frantz described the moment rescuers hauled them on to the boat. 'Everybody was cheering because you could see them lift them into the boat and they had the baby in their arms,' he said. The dad, clearly exhausted and distraught, gave the crowd a thumbs up as the boat approached the ship, then wiped his face with his hand. His daughter was sitting on the ship's doctor's knee as she was checked out, appearing healthy despite her ordeal. The physician has been praised online for stroking the girl's hair to keep her calm. 'When they were safely recovered, the captain made an announcement to say what happened,' one passenger wrote online. 'His voice was wavering and cracking, you could tell this shook him to the core.' Disney Cruise Line later praised its crew for their actions. 'The crew aboard the Disney Dream swiftly rescued two guests from the water. We commend our crew members for their exceptional skills and prompt actions, which ensured the safe return of both guests to the ship within minutes. 'We are committed to the safety and well-being of our guests, and this incident highlights the effectiveness of our safety protocols.' The Disney Dream was built in 2010 and last refurbished in 2024, according to Cruise Mapper.
The Independent
03-07-2025
- The Independent
Authorities reveal how girl, 5, fell overboard from Disney Dream cruise ship before dad jumped in to save her
Authorities have revealed how a five-year-old girl fell overboard on a Disney cruise, prompting a dramatic ocean rescue by her father. As the Disney Dream sailed toward Fort Lauderdale, Florida, at 11.30 a.m. on Sunday, the young girl was sitting on the fourth-deck railing while her parents played shuffleboard nearby. The family had completed a four-night voyage through the Bahamas aboard the $900 million cruise when disaster struck and the girl slipped backwards, plunging 45ft into the ocean. Initially, it was not clear what had led to the girl's fall. Now the Broward County Sheriff's Office has confirmed that the child had lost her balance and tumbled through a porthole, CBS Miami reports. The dad leapt from the cruise to save his daughter, treading water for up to 20 minutes before both were pulled aboard the ship's rescue boat. 'This family is so blessed,' a sheriff's spokesperson said, keeping the family's identity anonymous. 'It's great to be able to respond to good news rather than what could have been a tragic outcome.' Passenger Monica Shannon told CBS the railings had 'little divots and spaces' that made it possible for the girl to climb up. Shannon was on the third-floor deck at the time, one below where the girl plunged from. 'I kind of see something really fast flew by, I didn't think anything of it,' she said. 'I just figured it was maybe a part of the show or just the experience, but about five minutes later we heard that someone flew overboard.' Another passenger named Chandler previously told People magazine about the moment the girl hit the water. 'It sounded like hitting the pavement,' she said. 'Then this awful scream from what I assume is the mother and then this massive splash.' Chandler said she was with her family when the commotion began, and 'Mr. M.O.B.,' meaning man overboard, blared out over the ship's intercom as it traveled between Nassau and Grand Bahama Island. The passenger said she didn't think rescuers would be able to locate the dad and daughter and told her nine-year-old daughter Harper that 'they were probably gone.' Video shared online shows the yellow rescue boat quickly bobbing through the waters to reach the father and daughter as onlookers watched from on top of the ship. One clip shared on TikTok shows the girl in the boat wrapped in a towel while being embraced by a rescue worker. In another, the girl's sodden father could be seen breathlessly clutching onto a rescuer. Travelers erupted into rapturous applause as the rescue teams threw out a rope for the pair to grab onto and safely pulled them onto the jetty.
Daily Mail
02-07-2025
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS Truth about dad who jumped off Disney cruise to save daughter as police shut down viral rumor
A vicious rumor about how a young girl fell overboard from a Disney cruise ship before her hero dad dived in to save her has been debunked by police. The five-year-old fell from the fourth deck of the $900 million Disney Dream about 11.30am on Sunday as it was sailing to Fort Lauderdale from the Bahamas. Hundreds of passengers watched as the pair were dramatically rescued by the ship's crew after the brave dad kept his daughter afloat for 20 minutes. But the father switched from hero to villain online amid claims he lifted his daughter on top of a 42.5-inch (3.5ft) railing for a photo, and she fell backwards off the ship. The Broward County Sheriff's Office, which is investigating what happened, finally refuted the rumor on Wednesday afternoon. Sheriff Gregory Tony said the girl was sitting on the railing and fell backwards through a porthole, but that her father didn't put her there. 'After the girl's mother alerted her husband, who didn't see the incident, he jumped into the ocean to save his daughter,' he said. 'BSO detectives said after the 37-year-old father found his daughter, he treaded water until they were rescued by a tender that was launched from the ship.' The father was initially hailed as a hero for saving his daughter from almost certain death on her own in the ocean, without regard for his own life. But the tide turned when rumors that he caused her to fall began to spread, and he was pilloried online by thousands of strangers who repeated the wild accusations as if they were fact. Some even called for him to be thrown in jail, charged with child endangerment, have his daughter taken away from him, and his wife divorce him. This was despite no one who saw the girl fall publicly saying what happened, and no evidence he did anything wrong. The father (left) jumped in seconds after his daughter fell over the side of the ship, and kept her afloat for 20 minutes until help arrived Even before police exonerated him, some passengers shared alternate explanations their heard from far more credible sources. Monica Shannon, who was on holiday with her husband and young child, said a crew member told her a different story. 'She said the parents were playing shuffleboard and the girl was climbing on the railings... and as she went to climb up again she flew off,' she told the Daily Mail. Shannon said the crew told her the area was often very windy, and a sudden gust could have caused the child to topple over the edge. Deck four includes a jogging track and is lined with railings that extend 42.5 inches (3.5ft) from the floor with plexiglass in front of them. Indoor sections have open portholes that could easily be climbed out of but not fallen through. Shannon, from South Florida, said she was in her room on a lower deck directly below the shuffleboard area and 'saw something go by really fast'. The dad, clearly exhausted and distraught, gave the crowd a thumbs up as the boat approached the ship 'I didn't think anything of it, I definitely didn't think it was a person or a body that just fell off the ship,' she said. Minutes later her husband told her what happened and she rushed on to the deck. Another anonymous passenger who claimed to be near the family when the girl fell also insisted the railing photo story wasn't true. 'I was there. This is not what happened. I heard the screaming and went to help. The little girl was not sitting on the railing,' they wrote on Facebook. 'I was there with them. We were first to help when we heard the initial fall/scream.' Several passengers said the girl's mother was hysterical after watching her daughter and husband go over the side. 'The mom was yelling "she's five and can't swim",' passenger Shannon Lindholm said. Monica Shannon added: 'The crew said the mom was brought inside away from the edge and that she was hysterical the entire time.' Deck four includes a jogging track and is lined with railings that extend 42.5 inches from the floor with plexiglass in front of them Within seconds of the girl falling, the ship's automatic man overboard alarm and the emergency code 'Mr MOB' blared over the intercom. 'It was my first cruise ever and it was pretty traumatizing trying to wrap my head around it,' passenger Nikki Samsill Jackson told the Daily Mail. 'When it first happened, everyone was saying that somebody jumped in and at that point we didn't know he jumped in to save his child, everyone was thinking suicide or too much alcohol.' Within minutes the crew readied a yellow motorized rescue boat and went after the stricken pair as hundreds of passengers rushed to the railings. Flotation rings were thrown into the water, but they were either too far away, or the father couldn't grab them without risking letting go of his daughter. Passengers described the massive 130,000 gross tonnage ship, which travels at 25mph, turning around as the rescue boat raced to find them before they drowned. 'When they were rescued, dad had his arms around his child and he was treading water,' Jackson said. The ship's doctor has been praised online for stroking the girl's hair to keep her calm Another passenger, Gar Frantz described the moment rescuers hauled them on to the boat. 'Everybody was cheering because you could see them lift them into the boat and they had the baby in their arms,' he said. The dad, clearly exhausted and distraught, gave the crowd a thumbs up as the boat approached the ship, then wiped his face with his hand. His daughter was sitting on the ship's doctor's knee as she was checked out, appearing healthy despite her ordeal. The physician has been praised online for stroking the girl's hair to keep her calm. 'When they were safely recovered, the captain made an announcement to say what happened,' one passenger wrote online. 'His voice was wavering and cracking, you could tell this shook him to the core.' Detectives from the Broward County Sheriff's Office are investigating, but said there 'doesn't appear to be anything suspicious'. They confirmed the girl's age and that the man who jumped in was her father. 'Based on media reports I have read, the Disney crew was well prepared. Clearly, their training and readiness paid off because they executed a successful ocean rescue,' Sheriff Gregory Tony said. 'While there doesn't appear to be anything suspicious, Broward Sheriff's Office detectives are investigating the circumstances that led up to the child falling overboard. 'This family is so blessed. It's great to be able to respond to good news rather than what could have been a tragic outcome.' Disney Cruise Line later praised its crew for their actions. 'The crew aboard the Disney Dream swiftly rescued two guests from the water. We commend our crew members for their exceptional skills and prompt actions, which ensured the safe return of both guests to the ship within minutes. 'We are committed to the safety and well-being of our guests, and this incident highlights the effectiveness of our safety protocols.' The Disney Dream was built in 2010 and last refurbished in 2024, according to Cruise Mapper.
