Landlord Van Tomaras (right) said that he was "shocked' when he found out that his longtime tenant Marc Winner was charged in a series of rape cases. View Full Caption DNAinfo/Stephanie Lulay; Chicago Police Department

WEST LOOP — The landlord who saw West Loop tanning salon owner Marc Winner nearly every day for 14 years says he was "shocked" when he found out that his longtime tenant was charged with a series of rapes.

Speaking out for the first time, landlord Van Tomaras is now moving to evict Winner's now-shuttered Soleil tanning salon from the storefront at 1018 W. Madison St. On Thursday, Judge John J. Curry Jr. denied a motion to dismiss the eviction case by attorney Robert J. Shelist, representing Winner.

Attorney Cary Schiff, representing Tomaras, said Thursday Winner now owes $25,000 in back rent.

Accused of raping at least four women, Winner was released on bond last week, making a dramatic exit from the Cook County Jail.

Here's video of Marc Winner leading not media on chase through California Ave traffic @DNAinfoCHI pic.twitter.com/qhtNlEA2kt — Joe Ward (@JayDubWard) August 10, 2016

For 14 years, Tomaras saw Winner nearly every day — Tomaras' business is behind the tanning salon and the two, until recently, also lived across the street from each other.

He described Winner as "forceful," "aggressive," "obnoxious" and "provocative," but said he never thought Winner would be charged with rape.

Tomaras, 65, was recovering from a heart attack in the hospital in October when he saw Winner's mugshot flash across the TV news. Winner was charged with raping a customer, he remembered.

"It was a total surprise. I had no idea," he said. "When this all came to the surface, we were all very shocked to hear that he was branded as a repeated rapist."

In 2013, prosecutors filed the same exact charge against Winner in a very similar rape case — but that charge was later dismissed. In April of this year prosecutors again filed charges in the case.

Before the 2015 charges hit the news, Tomaras said he received no outside complaints from neighbors, but a couple living in a condo next door to the tanning salon had a running feud with Winner. Police were sometimes called, but those complaints were non-criminal in nature — over parking, late-night noise, Tomaras said.

"A lot of people were going in and out for tans; it was a busy business. But after 10, 11, 12 o'clock at night, I don't know," Tomaras said. "He can be obnoxious, he can be totally verbally abusive to people, but you don't equate this to a rapist."

The last face-to-face conversation Tomaras and Winner had was at the salon in May, the day before Winner was arrested.

"He said, 'I may go away for a couple of weeks. I'll see you in a couple of weeks.' That was it," Tomaras said. "It was a known fact at that time that he was charged with rape and he said that they were all unfounded charges and [he] will fight them."

Last week, the McGuire Condominium Board, which represents condo owners living at 1016 and 1018 W. Madison St., asked Ald. Danny Solis (25th) to do all he can to keep Soleil Tanning closed.

"It has been a very stressful situation, and we're trying to resolve it," Tomaras said.

In the lawsuit, Tomaras alleges Winner, an owner of the business, used the leased storefront in the commission of a criminal act, against state rules. The specific acts included sexual assault, the lawsuit alleges, noting that at the time the initial suit was filed in May, Winner had been arrested and charged with sexually assaulting three women between 2009 and 2015. Since then, prosecutors have filed charges in a fourth rape case.

"Each victim [from the first three cases] either visited or worked at the tanning salon," the suit alleges.

Winner's attorney, Robert J. Shelist, said the landlord's complaint contains allegations, not facts, that amount to "pure conjecture." He further argues that the criminal charges do not claim the alleged sexual assaults took place at the tanning salon.

Shelist declined to comment Wednesday and Thursday.

Steven J. Weinberg, who is representing Winner on criminal charges, could not be reached Thursday for comment.

A pre-trial hearing on the West Loop eviction case is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Sept. 1 in Room 1402 at the Daley Center, 50 W. Washington Blvd. Winner is expected to appear at the hearing, Schiff said.

'It was a shock' - Alleged rapist Marc Winner's longtime landlord speaks out. Story up soon. @DNAinfoCHI #westloop pic.twitter.com/cekbrrLDEr — Stephanie Lulay (@slulay2) August 18, 2016

The tanning salon closed

In late May, the city's Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection shut down Soleil Tanning for operating without a business license. Winner has not applied to renew the license yet, department spokeswoman Mika Stambaugh said.

The Tanning Solutions LLC has also been involuntarily dissolved by the state, Schiff said.

Prosecutors allege Winner, 45, raped nine women. Five of those incidents happened too long ago for charges to be filed against Winner, Assistant State's Attorney Mikki Miller has said. The remaining four cases are pending before Cook County Judge Carol M. Howard.

In three of those cases, Winner is accused of raping employees or customers at his tanning salon.

Winner was being held without bail in the third case until last week, when Howard set his bail in that matter at $100,000. Winner was previously hit with $500,000 bail for his first two cases, and $25,000 for the fourth pending case. That means Winner's total bail is $625,000, and he posted $62,500 to go free.

When Lesley Barton heard about the bail reduction, she said, "This is exactly why rape victims don't come forward." Winner was accused of sexually assaulting Barton in 2001 — but prosecutors only pushed for a misdemeanor battery charge in that case, and Winner was sentenced to probation.

RELATED: Tanning Salon Owner Marc Winner Raped Me in 2001 But Went Free, Woman Says

Winner will next appear in court on criminal charges Sept. 15 before Howard.

Soleil, a Marc Winner tanning salon, is located at 1018 W. Madison St. in the West Loop. The business was shut down by the city in May. [DNAinfo/Stephanie Lulay]

To learn more about Winner's pending cases, read:

• Accused Serial Rapist Marc Winner Could Be Free Soon After Bail Reduction

• Marc Winner Raped Woman In His Mom's Edgewater Home, Officials Say

• City Shuts Down Accused Serial Rapist Marc Winner's Tanning Salon

• Accused Rapist Marc Winner Attacked in County Jail, Officials Say

• Accused Serial Rapist's Tanning Salon Operating Illegally, City Says

• Accused Serial Rapist's Tanning Salon Should Be Shut Down, Alderman Says

• Suspected Serial Rapist Marc Winner 'Anxious' For Trial, Attorney Says

• Tanning Salon Owner Marc Winner Raped Me in 2001 But Went Free, Woman Says

• Salon Owner Charged In 3 Rape Cases Denied Bail, 'A Danger,' Judge Says

• Tanning Salon Owner Allegedly Raped 2nd Woman After Judge Tossed 2013 Case

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