Arlington, Texas (KDAF/CNN) — It’s pretty uncommon for Jolly old St. Nick to be put on the naughty list. But for Jerry Henderson, someone who looks remarkably like the real thing, it was all too real when he took a trip to Six Flags’ Holiday in The Park.
“I had five security guards around me and one of them comes up to me and asked me if I work for the park,” Henderson explained. “I told them ‘no’ and [the security] said, ‘Well, we’ve got a problem.'”
Turns out, Henderson’s “problem” was far beyond his red vest.
“[Security] said, ‘You look too much like Santa Claus. Go home shave your beard off come back and we’ll be happy to have you back.'”
But for Henderson, nicking his beard was out of the question.
“Not for you, Six Flags, or anyone else am I shaving my beard off,” he told security.
In a statement, Six Flags claims Mr. Henderson was handing out candy in a Santa costume, which is in violation of their “no costume policy.” They also said, “they cannot allow individuals who are not approved by the park to interact with small children in this capacity.”
Henderson denies he ever “dressed” like Santa, he just dressed like he always does during December.
“This is not my costume,” he explained. “This is casual wear, this is how I dress during the holidays.”
As for the candy, Henderson says it’s something he always carries around and he’ll hand it out if a kid ever approaches him.
“I’ve been doing this for so long that I told my kids whenever I die, I want to be buried in my suit!”
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