Traffic stop leads to discovery of more than $10,000 in stolen Disneyland merchandise

A man carrying more than $10,000 worth of Disneyland merchandise and drugs in his car was arrested last week on suspicion of several felony charges, including theft, the California Highway Patrol said.

Officers in Kern County were on traffic enforcement duty Friday afternoon when they came across a man driving a Nissan in the city of Rosamond. The man didn’t stop for a school bus, which signaled with flashing red lights and its stop sign extended that it was dropping off children from school, CHP Officer Aaron Maurer said.

Officers stopped the driver, learned he had a suspended license and called a tow service, Maurer said. As they were conducting a routine vehicle inspection before the car was towed, officers discovered the trunk was full of Disneyland memorabilia, including pins, stuffed animals and a backpack, as well as drugs, Maurer said.

“It was quite a lot,” he said.

Maurer said the man was not returning from Disneyland and did not know when the merchandise was acquired.

CHP officers contacted Disneyland officials and made arrangements to return the stolen items.

“DisneyLand can now return to being the happiest place on earth,” the CHP said in a Facebook post.

The man, who hasn’t been identified, was booked into a Kern County jail.

alejandra.reyesvelarde@latimes.com

Twitter: @r_valejandra