This is a strange story at many levels
Rolex stolen off sleeping mans wrist in hotel lobby
Armin Zeyafatzadeh, a man claiming to be robbed of a $24,000 Rolex while he was sleeping in the lobby at the Residence Inn & Courtyard Marriott in Washington DC (this property has two hotels brands in one).
He arrived at the hotel at 1AM but had not yet booked a room. He was not allowed to check in at the hotel so he waited in the lobby until his room was ready. Zeyafatzadeh claimed that he hadn't slept in 48hrs so he chose to stay in the lobby. He felt safe in the lobby because it was quiet. He fell asleep at 3AM, his head tilted back, and his mouth open.
It turned out that there was another person in the lobby, not far from Zeyafatzadeh, who was watching him closely. The guy noticed that Zeyafatzadeh was asleep and he approached him to get the fancy watch. The robber then lifted Zeyafatzadeh's wrist with both hands and undugged the watch. He made his escape with the watch in his possession.
Zeyafatzadeh noticed the watch was gone when he woke up. He had worn it every day for two years. Zeyafatzadeh alerted hotel staff and they agreed to review the security camera footage. He saw where the watch had been stolen and went to file a police report.
Although the man who stole the watch was said to be staying at the hotel during the incident, he was gone long before everyone realized what was happening. Zeyafatzadeh filed a complaint with the hotel but claimed that no one has reached him yet.
Here is the video footage from the watch being stolen.
Mans Rolex was stolen from his wrist while he was sleeping in the lobby of a Washington, DC hotel. pic.twitter.com/WWIrmSbGqe Don Diva Magazine (@dondivamagazine) September 14, 2021
It's a great story!
This story is so complicated. First, I hope they find that jerk who stole my watch. It was a horrible thing to do. They would think they'd be able figure it out pretty quickly, considering that the entire thing was captured on video and the man was allegedly a guest of the hotel.
There's more to the story than that. It is not asking for an early check-in but a free night. This request is unreasonable and almost no hotel will accommodate it, even if rooms are open.
If you've not slept in 48 hours, it seems like a bad decision. Even if you have the money to do so, as you would think someone who spends $24K on a watch would (youd think that is the key word).
I was amazed at how easy it was to rob a watch. It's amazing that the man didn't get up after his arm was moved, but it is possible for some people to be deep sleepers.
I am not a lawyer nor a liability expert but it is almost surprising that the hotel could be held liable for this incident, even if it was purely technical. The watch was taken by a man who was clearly not a guest at the hotel. He was not a guest and chose to stay in the lobby.
Is the hotel liable for property that is stolen, even though it was not a customer? Is the hotel liable because he booked a later reservation?
Bottom line
A Rolex was taken from the wrist of a man who was sleeping in the lobby at a Marriott property in Washington DC. He arrived at 1AM, but didn't have a reservation until later in the day. So he chose to stay in the lobby. He was clearly being watched closely by someone who managed to take his watch from his wrist. Later security footage revealed the truth, but at that point the robber was gone.
What do you think of this strange and wonderful story?
(Tip to View from the Wing, featured photo courtesy the hotel
