Antlers at Vail, Condominiums and Conference Center

The Case of the Bathroom Bandits

One of the routines around here happens the first thing every morning.  The pool gates are unlocked and the changing rooms are opened for cleaning.  It’s always an adventure to open those changing room doors to see what might have been left behind from the night before.  Usually though, it’s just several  dirty towels, a bathing suit, one flip flop and maybe some underwear.  This particular morning was a total surprise.

Brian, one of our cracker jack houseman, was first on the scene.  He opened the west changing room door and noticed it didn’t want to move any further than a few inches.  He put his shoulder into it to force the door ajar.  Once inside, he knew he had to call a supervisor.  “Gladys, could you come down to the pool please?”

Tell me what you saw Brian. “Every towel (about 50 of them) had been thrown from their cubbie storage and soaked with water.  Toilet paper rolls had been stuffed down the throat of the porcelain throne. The soap bottles had been emptied and smeared on the mirrors and walls.”

We've limited these pictures to protect the innocence of others. Some things are just too graphic.

It took two cracker jacks 3 hours to clean up the mess.  “We just do our job and move along”, he told me.  ”Some kids think this is funny.  I don’t because my Grandma (Millie Barela) told me not to do stupid things or she would tell my Mom and Dad”.

At 3:30 that afternoon the front desk got the call that shocked the staff.  A guest explained from the emergency phone at the pool “Someone has made a total disaster of the changing room down here.  Could someone come and clean up the mess?”

The Banditoes had struck again and in broad daylight! What fearlessness these criminals posses!  We knew we had to call in a private investigation team.

We contacted the Mariah Davis Team, LLC (Darci’s Daughter). Their motto:  “We Know Mischief  Because We’ve Done It.   Let Our Experience Work For You”.

Mariah Davis. We were thrilled she took the case.

She would not be able to crack the case without her two assistants Emily and Katy Radcliffe. They would go undercover and blend in as guests.

They went to work immediately.  Their professionalism was extraordinary.  Interviewing the rest of the commoners, dusting for finger prints and taking into account, of all things, bicycles and who owned them.  I asked “Why the bikes?”  Mariah looked at me with an unflappable expression and said “They will need a get-a-way device.  Now please let us do our job.”

The next morning the changing room at the pool was in total disarray again!  Three times in 24 hours.  Of course Brian was first to spot the damage and called to report it.  He was interviewed by Mariah, Emily and Katy for clues but only kept repeating “I’m really getting sick of cleaning this bathroom.”

Then the break came that the Team was looking for.  Two people of undisclosed age were throwing towels and linens off the 7th floor balcony and there were witnesses.  Mariah quickly grabbed a bicycle and brought it to the lobby.  “What are you doing that for?” she was asked.

“Now we wait.  They’ll be here” she said with certainty.

BRILLIANT!

The trap had been set and now all we had to do was wait…and wait….and wait.

Almost 10 minutes had gone by and as predicted, the two vandals walked into the Lobby to report that one of their bikes had been stolen.  BUSTED.

They were detained in our Lobby and the Kangaroo Court that had already tried and convicted them of these hideous crimes, only needed to render a sentence.  Since we are a kinder/gentler property we decided only to give them a good tongue lashing.  They were released under the custody of their parents.

The Antlers needs to express our appreciation to Mariah and her assistants, Emily and Katy, for solving this case without any real inconvenience to other guests.  They are the consummate professionals.

For the benefit of other properties we have released this photo of the two young men.

Beware. These two could check into your Hotel next.