Death of Stacey Tierney at Dreams Gentlemen’s Club prompts liquor license probe

The owner of a strip club where an exotic dancer was found dead says he’s now a more “hands-on” manager as he fights to keep his liquor licence.

The owner of a strip club where a dancer’s dead body lay for hours has told an inquiry he trusted managers to run the business while he focused on another venture.

Dreams Gentlemen’s Club owner Salvatore Aparo has told a liquor licensing hearing he is now a hands-on owner, running the Elizabeth St club with his fiance.

UK backpacker Stacey Tierney, then 29, was working at the club in 2016 when she died from a cocktail of drugs in a private manager’s lounge a week before Christmas.

More than 30 hours passed between Ms Tierney entering the room – the only one not monitored by cameras – and her body being taken from the venue by ambulance officers.

Police said there had been a clean-up of the room.

UK backpacker Stacey Tierney was found dead in a private manager’s lounge at the club.

Dreams Gentlemen’s Club is facing an inquiry over Mr Aparo’s suitability to hold a liquor licence. Picture: Alex Murray

The club is facing a Victorian Gambling and Casino Control Commission inquiry into the suitability of Mr Aparo to hold a liquor licence.

Mr Aparo told a hearing this week that until the death of Ms Tierney he had been a “hands-off” operator and trusted others to manage the venue.

He said he was running a construction business and had largely delegated the running of the venue to trusted managers, dropping in a few times a week and doing weekly phone calls.

Billed as Melbourne’s sexiest tabletop dancing venue, Mr Aparo said the fallout of Ms Tierney’s death had damaged the business’s reputation and put his own plans on hold.

He described it as a “very emotional rollercoaster”.

While he accepted a “lot of responsibility” it could only go so far, he said.

When asked if he put his trust in the wrong people, Mr Aparo said: “We all learn by our mistakes”.

Stacey Tierney died in 2017 from a cocktail of drugs. Source: Instagram

Mr Aparo denied suggestions the club operated after hours and outside its licensing hours.

Much of the questioning centred around the manager’s lounge where Ms Tierney was found dead.

Mr Aparo said it was his private refuge when he attended the club but was not open slather for other managers and promoters to use.

However, the hearing was told managers and promoters had access to the office and 24-hour access to the venue.

“I don’t know why people are implying there are parties – there were no parties, I run a very respectable business.”

There was also a culture of staff drinking at the club on their days off, the hearing heard.

“We did not have a rule about upper management not being able to come in on their night off,” he said.

He said he had put in new processes and that he could not turn back the clock.

“The tragedy is very heartfelt across the board. This is something I would not wish upon anyone.

“This is a very, very tragic situation.”

The commission will do an onsite inspection next week and deliver a finding next month.