MINNEAPOLIS — The former owners of a downtown Minneapolis hotel have been named in a lawsuit tied to the high-profile sex trafficking conviction of Anton Lazzaro.
Attorney Jeff Anderson filed suit on behalf of an unnamed plaintiff who claims to be one of Lazzaro's victims. The suit alleges Hotel Ivy staff "permitted" Lazzaro to engage in the sex trafficking of five teenage girls when he lived in a condominium at the hotel property.
“The red flags of danger by this powerful predator were flying," Anderson said in a statement. "Hotel Ivy ignored the flags and the signs. It chose to protect the predator.”
The suit claims front desk staff were trained to spot potential cases of sex trafficking, yet staff members testified in Lazzaro's trial that he had a "type" that included underage girls who would frequently visit Lazzaro's condo.
One staff member testified she thought the girls looked younger than 18. Testimony also shows that guests would have to 'see a person at the front desk' to get to the Ivy residences.
“There was a pattern of teenage girls arriving late at night to Hotel Ivy, visiting Lazzaro, and leaving a short time later intoxicated," attorney Molly Burke said in a statement. "It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that something sinister and criminal was occurring.”
Lazzaro was a donor to the Minnesota Republican Party who maintained high-level connections to state party leaders before his arrest in 2021. A federal jury convicted Lazzaro of sex trafficking minors in March 2023, and he was later sentenced to 21 years in prison. A second defendant, Gisela Castro Medina, was sentenced to three years in prison after she admitted to helping recruit underage girls for Lazzaro.
"There is a statute in Minnesota that says that hotels are required to provide training on sex track, trafficking and discerning the signs and the signals," said Anderson. "And ultimately requires them to not only be trained, but, really to do something about it."
The lawsuit lists the former owners of Hotel Ivy as defendants. Matthew R. McBride, who is counsel to those former owners, said his defendants will 'vigorously defend themselves in Court.'
"Although the scheme Mr. Lazzaro carried out is horrendous, Plaintiff’s claims against Defendants are meritless," said McBride in a statement.
McBride also pointed out that the Hotel Ivy and Ivy Residences where Lazzaro resided are 'two distinct pieces of real estate.'
However, Anderson's lawsuit points to testimony that Hotel Ivy staff worked for both the hotel and condo residents.
Advocates for victims of abuse say this highlights the importance of coming forward when you see red flags.
"That's why we have policies that put adults in positions of power to do what's right on behalf of kids," said Alison Feigh, the Director of Jacob Wetterling Resource Center, a program of Zero Abuse Project. "So training is one important piece the puzzle to prevent but it doesn't help when those who are trained don't act on behalf of kids."