A man running a Bourbon Street strip club is accused of raping a 16-year-old girl who went to his club last fall, New Orleans police said in court documents filed this week. They said an employee served her up to be victimized by leading her to the office where she was assaulted and leaving her there,

Authorities on Wednesday booked Vishal “Bobby” Motwani, 36, on counts of third-degree rape, false imprisonment and indecent behavior with a minor. Kenneth Rancifer, 40, the employee, was booked on second-degree kidnapping and being a principal to third-degree rape.

The club was Kama Sutra Cabaret in the 400 block of Bourbon, which had its liquor license suspended in February and was closed down amid a state Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control investigation into complaints of prostitution, underage dancers and underage drinking.

The rape investigation appears to have unfolded around the same time.

Vishal Motwani, via OPCSO ▲

An attorney for Motwani, Scott Stansbury, declined comment on the allegations Thursday.

Motwani is a nephew of the prominent French Quarter property owner Mike Motwani. An attorney for Mike Motwani said the uncle and nephew are estranged.

Rancifer is being represented by the Orleans Parish Public Defenders Office, which declined comment.

According to police, the girl who was allegedly raped by Motwani on Nov. 12, 2018, had traveled from Ascension Parish to explore the French Quarter with her friends.

The girl told police that she was allowed into Kama Sutra without having her identification checked and that she then “bonded” with a dancer at the club and was given alcohol there to the point that she felt intoxicated.

She reported that one of the performers had brought her into a private booth to coach her on stripping when Rancifer — described as a club manager — came in and told her that the owner wanted to see her in an office upstairs.

After leading her there, Rancifer spoke with Motwani, who told the girl he was the owner, police said. Rancifer left, while Motwani locked the door and invited the girl to his "place" for “a fun time” in exchange for $1,500.

After she declined, she said, he increased the amount of money, offered to buy her a car and claimed to be “a very important guy” in town. Eventually, the girl said, Motwani forced her to perform oral sex and then raped her.

Police said a security camera video at the club showed a friend of hers later carried her away from the club.

Kenneth Rancifer, via OPCSO ▲

The girl reported the rape after going home. She went to a hospital in Gonzales and underwent a sexual assault examination. The results of that examination aren’t described in court documents, but police said they identified Motwani as a suspect, and the girl picked him out of a photographic lineup.

The girl also gave a forensic interview at Children’s Hospital in New Orleans, and police obtained warrants to arrest Motwani and Rancifer last week.

A judge set Rancifer’s bail Wednesday evening at $15,000; he had bonded out by Thursday.

On Thursday morning, a judge set Motwani’s bail at $130,000. He made bond later in the day.

The ATC investigation into Kama Sutra earlier this year found numerous problems with the bar’s operations.

Though various records listed Chandru “Charlie” Motwani, as the club's manager, investigators determined that his son Bobby Motwani actually operated it, the ATC said. Investigators also established that Rancifer was a club manager despite being a convicted felon who could not legally hold such a job.

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Further, the ATC said, its investigators collected evidence of “solicitation of sex, lewd acts, underage alcohol sales to patrons as well as teenage dancers performing at the club.”

The ATC — which last year stepped up enforcement of a law barring dancers younger than 21 from performing topless in strip clubs — suspended Kama Sutra’s liquor license on Feb. 17. According to information online, it has closed permanently.

Kama Sutra in 2017 replaced a strip club named Babe’s Cabaret, which itself closed after drawing ATC citations during an earlier enforcement sweep.

An attorney for Charlie Motwani said earlier this year that Kama Sutra was separate and distinct from the better-known land and retail holdings of his brother Mike Motwani.

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Bobby Motwani and Rancifer could face up to 25 years in prison if convicted of third-degree rape, which can involve victims who are unable to consent to sex because they are intoxicated.

Motwani could also face seven years if convicted of indecent behavior with a minor, which state law says can involve victims younger than 17 who are subjected to any “lewd or lascivious” act.

If convicted of simple kidnapping, Rancifer could face a maximum of five years in prison.