A US couple is taking legal action against the luxurious Ritz-Carlton hotel in Half Moon Bay, California, after a disturbing incident during their stay.
The woman claims she awoke in the middle of the night and took a sip from a water bottle only to discover it was contaminated with semen.
The couple, who have chosen to remain anonymous and are referred to as Jane and John Doe in the lawsuit, had checked into the luxurious oceanfront Half Moon Bay resort on November 18, 2022.
They had booked the trip to spend time with their daughter, who was a university student nearby, and to celebrate Jane’s birthday.
According to the lawsuit, the couple’s stay initially began as expected. They were warmly greeted by the hotel staff upon their arrival, and everything appeared to be in order.
READ MORE: Florida man arrested after holding up drugstore to demand ‘all the Viagra’
However, on the night of November 18, the Does, who are from Washington state, realised they were running low on bottled water, so they contacted the front desk to request more.
Shortly thereafter, a male employee delivered five bottles to their room.
During the night, Jane awoke and reached for one of the bottles. She immediately sensed that something was wrong with the water and promptly contacted hotel security and management.
At first, she suspected the water might be chemically contaminated before considering the possibility of semen.
The lawsuit asserts that one of the hotel’s employees had ejaculated into a Ritz-Carlton labeled water bottle, which was then delivered to Jane and John Doe’s room.
A claim adjuster confirmed on January 12, 2023, that the water was indeed tainted with semen, as stated in the lawsuit.
Despite the couple’s request, the hotel has allegedly refused to turn over the bottle.
The couple is now pursuing legal action against the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, LLC, Marriott International, Inc., and unnamed defendants for the damages they have suffered.
They have chosen to remain anonymous in the lawsuit due to concerns about potential harassment, ridicule, injury, or embarrassment.
The lawsuit does not name the ten defendants involved, as the hotel has refused to disclose the identities of the employees working that weekend, even to law enforcement and the couple.
The couple maintains that the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office’s investigation has stalled due to the hotel’s lack of cooperation in providing the water bottle.
In addition to seeking an independent investigation into the DNA samples for potential identification of the suspect from sex offender registries, the couple is calling for an examination of the hotel’s hiring practices, questioning how a “criminal deviant” managed to sexually assault Jane Doe while employed by the hotel.
The lawsuit accuses the defendants of wrongful, malicious, intentional, and negligent actions, suggesting that the company is not taking responsibility for the incident.
The couple, who have been married for 25 years, asserts that this incident has caused intimacy issues in their married life.
They also note that when they raised their concerns with the hotel staff, the hotel’s response was to offer them points, as mentioned in the lawsuit.
