78-year-old theme park Santa Claus charged with child sexual abuse, possible links to human trafficking ring – Crime Online

A North Carolina man who played Santa Claus at an amusement park was arrested on charges of sexually abusing children from March 2023 to March 2024.

The Cherokee Indian Police Department said 78-year-old Bevier Hasbrouck Sleight III is facing 13 counts related to child abuse. The charges include aggravated sexual abuse, sexual abuse, abusive sexual contact, enticement of a minor to commit a crime, first-degree child abuse and offensive touching.

Investigators said Sleight was employed at Santa's Land Fun Park & ​​Zoo on Wolfetown Road, but the alleged abuse occurred at his home and not at the park, ABC 13 reports. Sleight's home is on Blythe Drive, near the park.

The Cherokee Police Department said Sleight's arrest was connected to the case of 39-year-old Caroline Roland, who is accused of running a child trafficking ring, and Sleight was allegedly one of her clients.

Court documents state that Roland injured a five-year-old girl by hitting the girl's hands, causing “multiple broken bones in each hand and several fingers,” according to court documents obtained by ABC 13.

Roland then allegedly picked up a child and threw him to the ground, where he repeatedly hit his head on the ground and then stopped breathing.

After being taken to the hospital, it was discovered that the child had a broken right arm, several facial fractures and numerous skull fractures.

Roland was arrested on June 5 and faces 11 charges, including child abuse, maiming, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and aggravated assault.

“I'm just amazed and shocked. I never would have imagined this,” resident Kim Lambert, who has previously dealt with Sleight, told KTTC. “I have a lot of grandchildren. So it's very shocking.”

Lambert had met with Sleight several times in the past, as Santa Land is on her family's property.

“He was always just a really nice person,” she said. “So, I'm very shocked to hear this.”

KTTC reports that police found 27 guns in Sleigh's RV.

His next court date is scheduled for next month. He remains behind bars on $75,000 bail.

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[Feature Photo via Cherokee Indian Police Department]