A woman claims Red Roof Inn and Motel 6 staffers in New Jersey looked the other way as she was being sold to strange men for sex.
The woman claims in two New Jersey Federal Court lawsuits against the hotel companies that she was trafficked from May 2014 to August 2015 by pimp Stanton Krogulski, who was fatally shot in Philadelphia in August 2023.
Krogulski, 36, whose murder remains unsolved, was arrested in 2007 for trying to shoot a Lumberton police officer, according to NJ.com. He operated his illicit businesses out of rooms at the Red Roof Inn’s Mount Laurel location and Motel 6 in Maple Shade, according to the lawsuit filed by the woman, who was identified only as Jane Doe.
The smooth-talking pimp and drug dealer lured the then homeless 17-year-old Doe back to his room at the Motel 6, where he plied her with narcotics.
Jane Doe eventually started “engag[ing] with a client every hour” because she believed Krogulski when he threatened to “blow [her] f–king head off” if she ever “spoke out or attempted to leave,” she said in court papers.
The filing fails to mention what the men were paying Krogulski.
Doe was “advertised on a website well known for human trafficking against her will, physically tortured, and sexually exploited under duress” at the Red Roof Inn and Motel 6.
Motel 6 and Red Roof Inn staffers were sometimes present for Krogulski’s abuse, she claimed in the lawsuit.
“Rather than taking timely and effective measures to thwart this epidemic,” Motel 6 and Red Roof Inn “have instead chosen to ignore the open and obvious presence of sex trafficking on their properties, enjoying the profit from rooms renter for this explicit and apparent purpose,” the victim said in the litigation.
Doe was beaten by Krogulski, who also raped, isolated, humiliated, and degraded until her escape in 2015, she alleged in the legal filing.
Red Roof Inn did not respond to multiple requests for comment. In a statement, Motel 6 noted the Maple Shade location was independently operated.
“We are truly saddened by the alleged incident and our thoughts are with the individual who has experienced such harm,” the Motel 6 statement reads. “There is nothing more important to us than the safety and well-being of our guests, our team members, and the community. We condemn all forms of human trafficking, which is a terrible violation of human dignity and a global crisis the hospitality industry faces. While the franchisees operate their properties independently, we follow strict security and safety protocols to help to enable safe environment for all.”
The chains flouted “mandatory company-wide anti-trafficking policies,” including “training staff on identifying and responding to human trafficking signs and victims,” Jane Doe said.
The ordeal has left Doe, who is seeking unspecified damages, traumatized, she said.
Doe “has endured profound and lasting trauma, experiencing symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder, including fear, anxiety, depression, and isolation, which are expected to persist lifelong,” the suit reads.
She “distrusts others, particularly men, and is triggered by sexual acts, preventing her from maintaining intimate relationships or enjoying physical intimacy, disrupting her interpersonal relationships and overall quality of life.”
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