A Disneyland worker pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges involving two dry-ice explosions that forced evacuations at Disneyland’s popular Toontown.
Christian Isaiah Barnes, 22, of Long Beach, Calif., faces one felony count of possession of a destructive device in a public place. He's set to appear in court on June 7.
Prosecutors accuse him of opening a vending cart, at which time the first water bottle containing dry ice exploded on Tuesday afternoon.
The defendant is accused of then taking the second water bottle from the cart and walking away toward the employee break room, prosecutors said.
While passing through Toontown, Barnes is accused of placing the second water bottle containing dry ice in a trash can before leaving the immediate area.
No one was injured in either explosion, but some park goers reported ringing in their ears. Disney officials closed down Toontown for about three hours while the rest of the park remained open.
The incident prompted a response by Anaheim police and an Orange County Sheriff’s Department bomb squad, prosecutors said.
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Barnes was arrested at the scene, prosecutors said.
If convicted, Barnes faces up to six years in state prison, prosecutors said.
