Man Racked Up Thousands Of Dollars In Charges At Hotels Without Ever Checking In

Like Jimmy McGill lounging in a resort pool while charging drinks to another guest’s room, an apparent con artist in South Carolina recently told police he’s been freeloading his way around the luxury hotels of the Southeast, charging thousands of dollars in purchases to rooms where he was never the guest.

According to the Island Packet, the man’s fun run ended last week in Hilton Head, SC, where the man had allegedly stayed for three days at the Sonesta Resort, helping himself to nearly $2,200 in food and spa services.

The man had apparently sneaked into the room after the previous guests left, but continued using the room and claiming he had been with those guests. Since he was using the room phone, staff didn’t initially suspect anything.

After a few days, the ruse was up and police were notified. According to the Packet, when officers arrived the man admitted that he’d pulled this scam at other hotels in the area, coat-tailing on deluxe rooms after the previous guests had left. The man didn’t say which particular places he’d conned, but police reportedly found room cards for multiple hotels among the suspect’s belongings.

Police say the man also told them he’d taken some hallucinogenic mushrooms. He handed over a bag believed to contain said ‘shrooms, while reportedly admitting to haven recently taken a raft of other drugs — including bath salts and meth — at a party in Atlanta.