January 15, 2021, 12:28 pm*
An Airbnb host going only by “Paul” told the New York Intelligencer that he caught his guests on camera saying that they had been a part of the assault on the Capitol and turned them in to the FBI. On top of that, he gave the guests bad reviews, which will make it difficult for them to use Airbnb in the future.
Advertisement
Hide
Paul became concerned about the intentions of his guests from South Carolina as January 6 approached and rumors surfaced of a massive pro-Trump rally being planned in Washington D.C. However, he was afraid to cancel their reservation, as doing so after receiving certain information about guests can result in a host’s account being penalized — a system put in place by Airbnb to discourage racial discrimination.
Advertisement
Hide
What he is allowed to do as a host is put up security cameras outside of the residence he was renting out. He watched the feeds from those cameras on the morning of the 6th and had a literal “oh f—” moment when he saw seven people leave the building with pro-Trump flags.
Advertisement
Hide
Afraid for his own safety, he called Airbnb customer service for help and, finding none, continued to watch the feed for his guests’ return. His worst fears were confirmed when one of them went out onto the porch and confessed to his participation under the cameras.
“We stormed the Capitol, we got inside of it,” the man said into a cell phone.
“Trump said we’re gonna march over to the Capitol Building … And we’re going to tell them what’s been happening. To be honest, they deserved it.”
Paul fled to a friend’s place and sent the footage to the FBI tip line after Airbnb’s customer service failed him. The company has now said that it has “suspended the guest pending a thorough investigation.”
Determined to do something more, Paul left his guests a scathing negative review that will probably render their account useless even if it’s restored.
Advertisement
Hide
“When Melissa booked my Airbnb, she claimed it was for a ‘history sight seeing trip’ but instead she and her guests made history by participating in the most horrific attack on our democracy at the Capitol building on January 6, 2021,” he said. “She and her guests returned after the riot and bragged in front of my house, captured on my Ring doorbell, ‘I was there … I didn’t want to get involved as much as I did but to be honest they deserved it.'”
Those who have not been banned from Twitter in the past week largely approve of Paul’s actions and continue to be floored by just how eager the rioters were to brag about their actions.
*First Published: January 14, 2021, 2:40 pm
0 Comments