Over the weekend, Gawker posted a particularly memorable Airbnb horror story: Comedian Ari Teman agreed to rent his Chelsea apartment to a guy named David Carter, who claimed he needed the place to host in-laws visiting from out of town. After handing off his keys, Teman returned to his building to pick something up and found an upset Carter in his lobby telling others “they’re shutting us down.” What was being shut down, exactly? Teman, who somehow did not bother to Google his guest beforehand, opened his computer and searched Carter’s email address and phone number, which led to advertisements for a “BBW Panty Raid Party,” an “XXX FREAK FEST,” and “Turn Up Part 2: The Pantie Raid” in Manhattan that night.
By that time, Teman says his apartment was trashed, with damaged furniture and musical equipment and bags of condoms and liquor lying around. The cops were eventually called to sort things out, as was Airbnb. According to Gawker, within 24 hours, the website “had sent a locksmith to change [Teman’s] locks, made plans to put him up in a hotel for a week, and wired him $23,817 (of which Airbnb itself is insured, but nonetheless).”
The New York Post caught up with both parties on Monday: Teman went into further detail about his ordeal with Carter and the crowd of “nearly nude, overweight people” he brought with him. “The worst part of the Internet right there was in my apartment,” he said. Meanwhile, Carter, who claims that he had “nothing” to do with the orgy advertisements, says that Teman is exaggerating the situation because he’s now in trouble with his landlord. “I had six people, friends and family,” Carter told the paper. “I was not arrested. I did nothing wrong.” While the former is true, the latter totally depends on what you personally consider a good time.
