A dad went viral on TikTok after sharing the story of a harrowing night he and his family experienced at a Royalton Inn in Upper Sandusky, Ohio.
TikTok user and MMA fighter Seth (@southernohiomopar) posted a video showing a police officer talking to a nearly incoherent man, writing in the video’s overlay “Read description.”
Providing some more details, the second text box of the video reads, “Royalton Inn. Upper Sandusky, OH. Our bathroom door was locked and we were refused a key/another room/a refund/or to call the owner.”
What led to the police being called in the middle of the night?
Seth explained he traveled with his wife and 7-month-old baby ahead of an MMA fight, and recounted the ordeal in a detailed caption.
“We checked in at 11:30ish pm, and went to bed around midnight. At 4:30am, my wife needed to pee, and noticed the door was locked from the inside,” he says.
What followed was a bizarre sequence of events. Seth says he went to the front desk but it was unmanned, so he decided to call the inn number.
After waking up an apparent staff member, Seth was shocked by the response.
“He said he didn’t have a key to get into the commercial door handles, the lobby bathroom was also locked, and he refused to give us another room,” the TikToker explained.
Things escalated quickly as the staff member admitted that he was not even an employee of the hotel, but was “filling in for the weekend” for the owners.
To top it all off, the dad wrote, “In the middle of our conversation before the police were called, he left to go to his room (107) to use the bathroom.”
Seth concluded the caption by indicating that a lawsuit is in the works, and adding, “TikTok please do your thing.”
What did the police have to say?
In the clip, the “fill-in” inn employee is sitting down in a chair, looking somewhat dazed, as a police officer goes off on him. It’s unclear who ended up contacting the police.
“They can’t use the restroom,” the police officer says to the man. “And all they want is either a room or somehow to get into the restroom that they want.”
The couple behind the camera add that they’ve been trying to find ways to open the bathroom door, but the man refused to help.
The police officer gives the man two options. Either unlock the bathroom or remove the couple from the hotel if he feels unable to resolve the situation.
The man responds by saying, “If we figure out what’s going on here, maybe, maybe not.”
The rest of the video is more of the same back-and-forth. The couple repeatedly asked for another room, but the man either didn’t know how to handle the request or seemed too confused to help. The presence of a police officer didn’t seem to make a difference.
A couple of days later, Seth posted an update, confirming their next legal steps
In the video, he appears to be driving and starts by apologizing for the late update.
To explain the bruises on his face, he says, “We were in upper Sandusky for an MMA fight… I did win.”
Seth then reiterates that they’re pursuing a legal case with the inn.
“I spoke to my brother who’s a lawyer in the Akron area,” he says. “And it looks like we’re going to be pursuing personal injury and breach of contract.”
The Royalton Inn bathroom was critical
Seth also provides more context to the situation, saying her wife recently had a uterus procedure. It makes a basic amenity like a bathroom even more dire of a necessity.
“You know, being forced to hold your urine over not only the course of our initial discussion but then after the police were there,” Seth says. “And then also to have to pack your room, wake up our infant son, load the car up, and drive to a gas station for her to be able to relieve herself was just a ridiculous situation.”
Seth concludes the video by thanking his TikTok audience, saying he appreciates how supportive and invested everyone got.
How many Royalton Inns are there?
Despite the catch-all and familiar name, there are just two Royalton Inn & Suites. Both are 2-star hotels near Columbus, Ohio.
@southernohiomopar My wife and I, along with our 7month old baby, traveled to this Royalton Inn in Upper Sandusky OH for a 2 night stay for my MMA fight saturday. We checked in at 11:30ish Pm, and went to bed around midnight. At 4:30am, my wife needed to pee, and noticed the door was locked from the inside. After i went to the unmanned desk, and had to call and wake this guy up, he came into the lobby and acted bumfuzzled as to why i was asking for another room. He said he didnt have a key to get into the commercial doorhandles, the lonby bathroom was also locked, he refused to give us another room, he refused to call the owner of the property, HES NOT EVEN AN EMPLOYEE OF THIS HOTEL, he was “filling in for the weekend” for the owners, and to top it all off, in the middle of our conversation before the police were called, he left to go to his room (107) to use the bathroom 😂😂😂. We are filing a lawsuit. Tiktok please do your thing.
♬ original sound – Southern Ohio Mopar
Commenters are appalled
In the first video Seth posted, commenters were eager to hear an update. They’re likewise upset about the situation the couple found themselves in.
“Leave. Get another hotel,” a user suggested. “Dispute charges with your credit card company.”
“Why do I feel like this is the type of place that would have hidden cameras in the room?” wrote another.
“This is insane!!! Is that guy drunk?!!” asked a third. “I’m invested, did ya’ll get another room or go somewhere else? So sorry ya’ll had this happened!!!”
The Daily Dot has reached out to Seth (@southernohiomopar) via TikTok messaging and comments, and to Royalton Inn via email.
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