Couple rent house on Airbnb and return to find it trashed by a ‘drug-induced orgy’

THEY thought they were renting their house out for the weekend to a nice man in his 40s. What they found when they came home has shocked them to the core.

Couple’s house trashed in ‘drug-induced orgy’

A CANADIAN couple who rented their home on Airbnb returned to find it completely trashed in what police are calling a “drug-induced orgy.”

Mark and Star King from Calgary thought they’d make a bit of extra cash by renting our their Sage Hill home through the popular accommodation site Airbnb.

Instead, what transpired was something out of a nightmare. Speaking to the Calgary Herald, the couple told how they returned to find their house completely trashed. Garbage was strewn everywhere, broken furniture, stained couches, cigarette butts littered the rooms, barbecue sauce on the walls, underwear, condoms — even a chicken bone in Star’s shoe.

Mark told the Calgary Herald he and his wife were “almost knocked over by the fumes” when they were finally allowed back into their house.

Broken glasses and rubbish were strewn about the house. Picture: Calgary Herald.

They thought they were renting out their family home for a weekend to a man in his 40s who claimed to be in town for a wedding. Instead, it looks like what occurred was a two-day, out-of-control house party.

Neighbours reported a party bus dropping off at least one hundred people just hours after the couple had handed their keys over. It was not until Monday that the Kings were aware of what was going on after a neighbour called them to ask if everything was OK.

“For me, my first feeling was shock,” Mark told the Calgary Herald. “I couldn’t process it. This is our home, this is our sanctuary. We’ve got a five-year-old and a one-year-old, and the sense of violation … the lie that was told and the trust that I had in somebody, and then this happens.”

Mark says the damage will cost between $52,000 ($C50,000) and $77,000 ($C75,000) to fix the two-storey house, which the couple bought in 2010.

There were piles of rubbish littered throughout the house. Picture: Calgary Herald

“When we came in, one of the police said, ‘this isn’t a party, this was a drug-induced orgy,’” said Mark.

Constable Attila Horvath, the lead investigator, said body fluids were also found in the home.

“In my nine years of policing, I’ve never seen anything like it,” he said.

Police said the man who rented the house could face charges of mischief over $5000.

Airbnb, which has a $1-million host damage guarantee, has offered cleaning services and accommodation while they work to make the house their home once more.

“We have zero tolerance for this kind of behaviour and our team is working quickly to make this right,” said Airbnb spokesman Jakob Kerr.

The King’s say they will have to buy new furniture after their was trashed over the weekend. Picture: Calgary Herald.

“We have banned this guest from Airbnb, and our trust and safety team will offer its full assistance to law enforcement in any investigation of this incident. We have been in very close contact with these hosts and we are working quickly to reimburse them under our $1 million host guarantee, which covers a host’s property in the rare event of damages. Over 35 million guests have stayed on Airbnb, and property damage is extremely rare.”

But Mark told the Calgary Herald they have been left feeling completely violated.

“The drugs, the sex … everything imaginable that would violate a home has happened here,” Mark said. “We don’t want to touch anything. We don’t want to sleep in these beds again. We can’t walk on these carpets in bare feet ever again.”

Tomato sauce and mustard was smeared over the couches. Picture: Calgary Herald.