ST. LOUIS — A Missouri woman has filed a lawsuit against Intown Suites Management and SLAM Properties Management alleging that she was trafficked for sex at the Intown Suites Hazelwood hotel over a period of several years, beginning when she was a minor.
Makayla Benson, the plaintiff in the case, claims in her lawsuit that from 2020 to 2023, she was repeatedly trafficked for sex at the Intown Suites Hazelwood, according to the complaint filed Feb. 3 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.
The lawsuit seeks damages under the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008.
According to the complaint, Benson was subjected to rape, physical and verbal abuse, psychological torment and false imprisonment while being trafficked at the hotel.
The suit alleges that traffickers used violence, manipulation, and intimidation to force her into non-consensual commercial sex acts.
Benson claims that employees of Intown Suites and SLAM Properties were aware of the trafficking but failed to intervene. The lawsuit specifically names two hotel staff members—identified as “Hotel Manager Tony” and maintenance worker Steven Deschler—who allegedly accepted cash and sexual favors from traffickers in exchange for looking the other way.
"Defendant Intown Suites has financially and otherwise benefited as a result of these acts, omissions, and/or commissions by maintaining the loyalty of the segment of their customer base that seeks to participate in the sex trade," the complaint states. "Moreover, Defendant Intown Suites directly benefitted from the trafficking of Plaintiff on each occasion they received payment for rooms that she was being kept in at Defendant Intown Suites’ hotel."
The complaint states that as a direct and proximate result of "Intown Suites’ acts, omissions and/or commissions alleged in this Complaint, Plaintiff has suffered substantial physical and psychological injuries as the result of being trafficked and sexually exploited at Defendant Intown Suites hotels and properties."
The complaint asserts that both men acted within the scope of their employment, making Intown Suites and SLAM Properties liable for their actions.
Benson’s lawsuit argues that Intown Suites and SLAM Properties financially benefited from the trafficking by continuing to rent rooms to her traffickers.
The complaint states that the hotels maintained “the loyalty of a segment of their customer base that seeks to participate in the sex trade” and directly profited each time a room was paid for in connection with the trafficking.
Under federal law, hotels and other businesses can be held accountable for human trafficking if they knowingly benefit from such activity or fail to take action to prevent it.
Her lawsuit argues that Intown Suites and SLAM Properties violated their duty to prevent trafficking on their premises and should be held accountable for the trauma she endured.
Benson is requesting a jury trial and seeking compensatory and punitive damages in excess of $75,000, as well as attorney’s fees and other legal relief. She is represented by Andrew H. Marty and Evan M. Bettag of Marty & Bettag in St. Peters.
The attorneys and the hotel declined to comment on the matter.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Eastern District case number: 4:25-cv-00133