Myrtle Beach motel gave discount rooms for drugs, prostitution, lawsuit says
For years a Myrtle Beach motel was known for dirty rooms, cockroach colonies and two-star reviews. What some guests didn’t know was that hotel employees offered discounts to drug dealers and prostitutes, even designating rooms for the illegal activities if they got a piece of the action, authorities say.
Law enforcement is now suing to close the Coral Sands motel for at least a year, or until it cleans up its act.
An investigation, started in 2018 by Myrtle Beach police, found that for several years guests and employees of the Ocean Boulevard motel used and sold illegal drugs and engaged in prostitution inside, the lawsuit says.
Management and security for the motel purchased illegal drugs from tenants and provided discounts on rooms in exchange for drugs and sex acts, the lawsuit says. Management also accepted bribes in exchange for allowing people to sell drugs at the motel and had a room set aside for drug use and prostitution, the lawsuit says.
In a lawsuit filed this week in Horry County court, Solicitor Jimmy Richardson is asking a judge to temporarily close the Coral Sands Motel, located at 301 N. Ocean Boulevard.
Court documents say the motel received a notice of public nuisance on June 7 and did not respond within the 10-day limit.
Since February 2018, Myrtle Beach police officers and city officials have met with the business owner, Harkishin Bhambhani, and its manager to address the motel’s “dilapidated condition and its high calls for service,” the lawsuit says. “Despite working with the owner and manager, the Coral Sands’ nuisance activity remained unabated.”
This story was originally published June 26, 2021 at 2:12 PM with the headline "Myrtle Beach motel gave discount rooms for drugs, prostitution, lawsuit says."
