Man Sues Airbnb Host for ‘Damages to Marriage’ After Alleged Extortion Attempt
An Airbnb host is being accused of trying to extort a former guest by sending illicit photos of him and a mystery woman to his wife.
A man is suing his Airbnb “superhost” for “damages to his marriage” after she allegedly attempted to extort her guest by sending his wife pictures of him and another woman. The Daily Mail reviewed court papers pertaining to the case.
Mississippi resident Shawn Mackey rented Pamela Fohler’s Oklahoma retreat for himself and a group of friends in the fall of 2022. Mackey reported there'd be a total of four guests including himself. The night Mackey arrived, he sent Fohler a total of nine guests he was expecting for dinner.
Fohler responded a few minutes later: “We will be able to accommodate a max of 8 guests. This is due to the city restrictions and capacity at our home. I apologize we had not discuss [sic] the guest count tripling.” She asked Mackey to add the additional guests to the reservation, noting there was an additional charge even if they didn’t spend the night.
Almost an hour later, she emailed him again. In the meantime, she’d allegedly received complaints from the neighbors regarding noise and profanity coming from Mackey’s party.
The altercation eventually escalated so much that Fohler requested Mackey and his party leave the house. “I am very sorry, but you have violated the no-party rule, disturbed my neighbors by cursing and yelling in the parking lot, and have unauthorized guests,” Fohler said in a message to her guest. “I am asking you to leave now. I can't allow you to stay, I am sorry.”
However, Mackey maintains that none of this is true. He said he left the following morning, per Fohler’s request, but said there was no party, no cursing, and no uninvited guests. “At the time he checked out of the property, [Mackey], who had broken no rules and had spoken to the host, thought all issues had been resolved as simply a misunderstanding,” his lawsuit reads.
Mackey promptly requested a refund of $502.46, presumably for the nights he booked but did not stay, and left a negative review of the property. This is when things took a much darker turn. Fohler, concerned that Mackey's review would jeopardize her “superhost” status, allegedly “began harassing” him.
About a week after their ill-fated meeting, Fohler sent Mackey an image of him and another woman snapped from the house’s doorbell camera. In the attached message, Fohler refers to Mackey’s wife by her first name.
“Hello Shawn, hope you are well. Sorry it took so long to get the photos you requested together to show your stay at our home. But I had faith, was driven by integrity, so I committed to get these posted for you and Airbnb. Photo at 3:16 am is especially notable. Should I forward the photos and videos to Teresa, or will you?” the chilling text read.
Airbnb deleted Mackey’s review and threatened to terminate his account. They sent him a bill for $960, which reportedly included an additional guest fine of $160; two separate $250 fines for “breaking rules against local guests” and “excessive noise”; and $300 for “moderation of your review.”
Mackey refused to pay. Fohler retaliated by emailing the illicit photo to his wife with the subject line “nice bag.” In the body of the message, Fohler wrote: “I love your bag, where'd you get it?” seemingly referring to the pictured woman’s purse.
Mackey claims that his marriage has suffered as a result of Fohler’s harassment. He also claims Airbnb did not defend him in the matter, apparently taking Fohler’s side. For her part, Fohler denies sending Mackey the image or ever communicating with his wife.
“The plaintiff's marriage has suffered as a result,” the lawsuit alleged, before going on to detail Mackey’s “extreme emotional distress, public humiliation, and mental anguish.” He is suing Fohler for “economic damages” and “damages to his marriage” in addition to emotional damages related to Fohler’s alleged violation of his privacy rights.