Patrons filed a lawsuit January against Arizona strip clubs for allegedly drugging them and using their credit cards, Fox 10 reported.
Nearly 20 individuals have come forward accusing three Arizona strip clubs of charging exorbitant amounts to their credit cards without consent. The Dream Palace in Tempe and the Skin Cabaret and Bones Cabaret in Scottsdale, are accused of orchestrating a sophisticated scam, according to Fox 10.
The lawsuit charges club owners with racketeering and conspiracy, and the plaintiffs seek a jury trial. The plaintiffs, who all chose to remain anonymous, recount stories of disorientation and helplessness, followed by the discovery of unauthorized credit card charges amounting to tens of thousands of dollars the next day, the outlet reported.
Lawsuit: 3 Arizona strip clubs drugged customers, charged credit cards for $1 million https://t.co/ExpMJ7N7Nm
— FOX 10 Phoenix (@FOX10Phoenix) March 26, 2024
“I remember walking through what I thought was a cloud of perfume or makeup or something like dusty from one of the kind of cracks of light that was coming through and that’s when I ended up in the VIP room and started to get these symptoms not alcohol-related, something else that made me acquiesce and go along to what they seemed to be pushing,” one victim said, the outlet reported. The first victim allegedly discovered several charges on his credit card amounting to $72,000.
Similarly, another plaintiff describes feeling lost and out of sorts after only consenting to a few transactions, only to find his credit card billed for $181,000. “Couldn’t have an appetite to eat for days after this had occurred … strain on not only myself, a family, wife, had to get my parents involved. We had little children as well so just the impact emotionally was pretty difficult to bear,” the second plaintiff said, Fox 10 reported.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – DECEMBER 03: Cast members, shot through a plexiglass floor, dance during a performance of “Sexxy After Dark: Where Dinner Meets Play” at Larry Flynt’s Hustler Club on December 3, 2020 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jennifer Romas, the producer, director and star of “SEXXY: The Show” at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, created a supper club version of the topless revue, which has been closed since March because of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, to play for a limited engagement at the gentlemen’s club. A three-week statewide pause that went into effect last week due to surging coronavirus numbers in the state postponed the show’s debut. The cast and crew, who all had to quarantine and get tested for the virus, adapted the production to the new COVID-19 restrictions that include limiting audience sizes to 50 people, which forced other Las Vegas shows that recently reopened to close again. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
“They all tell the same story yet none of them have met,” said Attorney Rod Galarza, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs, according to Fox 10.
Authorities have disclosed how the VIP process in these strip clubs was conducted. Customers agree on a price with a hostess, then sign a contract, hand over a credit card and ID, give a thumbprint, and take a photo, Fox 10 stated. Galarza says his clients believe they were drugged, as they hardly remember signing anything. (RELATED: NHL Players Reportedly Pulled Off Shameful Move Involving Strippers. Should Fans Be Furious?)
“They vaguely recall someone yelling at them to ‘quit messing around and to hold the pen properly’ to sign a document on a clipboard, or alternatively being yelled at by a bouncer or hostess to ‘sit up straight and smile, we’re trying to take your picture, you’re not smiling,'” Galarza said, according to Fox 10.