Grandmother Finds Loaded Handgun On Disney World's "Dinosaur" Ride

An elderly woman visiting Disney World with her grandson discovered a pistol loaded with hollow-point bullets on her seat at the amusement park’s “Dinosaur” ride, police report.

After exiting the ride in the Animal Kingdom theme park Sunday afternoon, the woman handed the ride attendant the gun, according to an Orange County Sheriff’s Office report. “My grandma found it on her seat,” the boy announced.

A subsequent investigation determined that the weapon was owned by Angelo Lista, a 44-year-old Florida businessman who was visiting Disney with his family. Lista, who has a concealed weapons permit, told deputies that he earlier rode the “extremely bumpy” “Dinosaur” attraction and that his handgun apparently “just slipped out” of his back pocket.

Lista, owner of Prestige Brick & Pavers, explained to investigators that he had passed through Disney’s “security bag check” area, but “since the gun was in his back pocket, the issue never came up.”

Asked why he did not tell Disney security--which, remarkably, eschews metal detectors--that he was carrying, Lista “replied that he did not know he was supposed to because it was not posted anywhere.” Lista added that he thought the bag check was “only to search for bombs or explosives,” and that he was unaware that patrons were barred from carrying handguns in "The Happiest Place on Earth."

The gun--a Cobra .380 caliber--was confiscated by deputies, though Lista was told he could later retrieve it from the sheriff’s evidence room.