The Hotel Ivy and its management company are being sued, accused of playing an “integral role” in a sex trafficking scheme that ended in the conviction of Anton Lazzaro.
The man federal prosecutors dubbed “Minnesota’s Jeffrey Epstein” was convicted of sex trafficking of minors in 2023. He’s currently serving a 21-year prison sentence.
RELATED: Former political donor, strategist sentenced to 21 years on sex trafficking charges
Lazzaro resided in a condo at The Hotel Ivy in downtown Minneapolis. During his two-week trial, the minor victims testified that the 33-year-old brought them to his condo and gave them cash, alcohol vapes and other items in exchange for sex.
Advertisement
The civil lawsuit filed in federal court late Monday afternoon accuses hotel staff of failing to intervene to stop the illegal activity, despite being trained to identify signs of sex trafficking.
The lawsuit names Heartland Ivy Partners LLC as the owner of The Hotel Ivy and Wischermann Partners as the management company at the time of the alleged conduct.
“Although the scheme Mr. Lazzaro carried out is horrendous, Plaintiff’s claims against Defendants are meritless, and they look forward to their day in Court,” said Matt McBride, an attorney representing the ownership and management groups.
Jeff Anderson, a St. Paul-based attorney who specializes in sexual abuse cases, represents the minor victim who is suing the hotel and management company.
“The red flags of danger by this powerful predator were flying,” Anderson said in a statement Monday. “Hotel Ivy ignored the flags and the signs. It chose to protect the predator.”
Advertisement
The lawsuit relies heavily on the testimony from Lazzaro’s criminal trial, including from a woman who worked as the front office manager at The Hotel Ivy in the summer of 2020.
The manager testified that the hotel’s front desk handled visitors for the condominium residents. According to the trial testimony, the only way to access those units was to ride a private elevator summoned by the hotel staff.
According to the lawsuit, the office manager testified that she saw girls come to visit Lazzaro during her evening shift.
During her testimony, the manager said the girls who came to see Lazzaro looked around 16 or 17 years old. She also acknowledged it would be a “red flag” to see young girls coming to or leaving the hotel residences late at night.
The lawsuit argues there were multiple occasions where staff could have intervened. Hotel staff observed one minor victim, who testified she was so intoxicated she struggled to walk through the lobby after leaving Lazzaro’s condo.
Advertisement
Another victim testified at the trial that she told staff at the front desk that Lazzaro was offering girls cash and other items in exchange for sex. She also asked for help getting her sister to leave Lazzaro’s condo and was told by staff they couldn’t do anything.
Anderson is expected to speak about the lawsuit Tuesday afternoon at a press conference.
For 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS complete coverage on the Tony Lazzaro case, CLICK HERE.
A United Airlines flight bound for Minneapolis from Chicago was reportedly diverted after an “unruly passenger” tried to breach the cockpit late on Friday.
The FBI and police responded to reports of a security concern with the passenger, who was detained by police at the Dane county regional airport in Madison, Wisconsin.
The flight continued its journey to Minneapolis, landing early on Saturday morning, according to FlightAware data. There were no reported injuries among the 147 passengers and six crew members onboard the flight.
A United spokesperson said flight 2005 “landed safely in Madison … to address a security concern with an unruly passenger”.
Advertisement
The FBI in Milwaukee said the agency was notified of the flight’s diversion, and its agents, along with local law enforcement, responded to the airport.
“A subject was detained by the [local] sheriff’s office, and afterwards passengers resumed their flight,” an FBI spokesperson said.
In air traffic communications reported by NBC News, personnel onboard the plane could be heard discussing the attempted cockpit breach with ground control.
“I do not believe they ever cuffed him, but they were able to finally get control of him after multiple attempts to try to breach the cockpit,” a member of the crew said. “I believe at this point he is seated in a seat and flanked with law enforcement officers on either side.”
Aircraft hijackings are almost unheard of in the US since the September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001, when four aircraft were taken over by Islamic extremists, including two that crashed into and destroyed New York’s World Trade Center.
Advertisement
But between 1968 and 1972, known as hijacking’s so-called golden age, more than 130 US planes were hijacked. Many of those hijackers demanded to be flown to Cuba.
CHICAGO (WLS) — A United Airlines flight that left Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport Friday was diverted due to an unruly passenger, officials said.
United flight 2005 from Chicago was headed to Minneapolis but landed in Madison, Wisconsin.
ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch
“United flight 2005 from Chicago to Minneapolis landed safely in Madison, Wisconsin to address a security concern with an unruly passenger,” the airline said in a statement. “The flight is expected to continue to Minneapolis later on Friday.”
An ICE agent facing several assault charges in connection with a January shooting involving two Venezuelan people in Minnesota has been arrested in Texas, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said.
Christian Castro was charged earlier this month with four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime.
CNN is working to determine whether Castro has an attorney and has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
Castro faces those charges in connection with the shooting of Julio Sosa-Celis, a Venezuelan man shot in the leg through the front door of a Minneapolis home. The incident took place during the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement blitz in the Twin Cities.
Advertisement
Originally, Sosa-Celis and his cousin Alfredo A. Aljorna were facing federal charges after DHS said they had attacked an agent, prompting him to fire a defensive shot.
But the Justice Department dropped the charges in February, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement said two of its agents, who made false statements about the incident under oath, were placed on administrative leave.
