An Oakland couple who thought they were renting their home out to an older man from Chicago on New Years Eve were duped and wound up with a trashed residence complete with beer cans, cigarette and marijuana buds, broken glass and even blood stains on a wall.
It turned out the renter was a teen throwing his 18th birthday party and invited 200 of his closest friends for a wild celebration which ended up with police and an arrest.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the teen who rented the home belonging to Reshma Vasanwala and Jim Santi Owen returned to the residence and was arrested by police for vandalism. Although police told Owen that they found up to 300 kids in the area following the party, Owen reportedly told the Chronicle that as of now, he plans to press criminal charges and file a civil suit against the teen renter.
The couple was notified of the situation when their neighbor sent them a text as they were out enjoying a quiet New Years Eve. They are currently gathering estimates and bids from contractors as they calculate the cost of repairs from the unexpected evening.
Airbnb issued a statement which read “We have zero tolerance for this kind of behavior and our team is working quickly to make this right. We have banned this guest from airbnb.”
However, the couple says they don’t trust airbnb considering it took them 14 hours to receive a phone call from the lodging startup to address the situation. This and other things have made the couple skeptical as to whether airbnb will pay for the damage done to their home.
They said they will never rent their home out on airbnb again.
Last August, the owner of the Acacia Mansion, in Ojai thought she was renting her estate out to a “group of friends” on summer vacation only to discover her home had been rented to a gay porn company which allegedly left the place in a state of utter disgust–with fecal matter on the walls, linens, carpets and ceilings.
The owner has filed a lawsuit against the Lucas Entertainment and is seeking compensation for damages both to her property as well as her emotional state, among other things.
Follow Adelle Nazarian on Twitter @AdelleNaz and on Facebook.
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