Club Guilty Of Kidnapping In Rip-Off Scam In Hungary

  • 7 May 2013 9:00 AM
Club Guilty Of Kidnapping In Rip-Off Scam In Hungary
The practice of detaining customers until they pay exorbitant bills amounts to kidnapping, the Kúria ruled yesterday. The decision upholds a Capital Court of Appeals judgment of last September which sentenced the manager of Budapest’s Caligula nightclub to 42 months in prison.

The incident in question occurred on July 22, 2007, when two Dutch tourists were given a bill for Ft 179,000. When they could not pay, one of them was taken to an ATM to withdraw cash while the other was prevented from leaving the Caligula. When one of them began arguing, bouncers punched him and kicked him.

The following day two Mexicans and an American were charged Ft 377,000 for drinking three beers at the same club.

One and then a second were taken away to withdraw cash while the other two were forced to stay. They eventually paid more than Ft 500,000.

Source: Hungary Around the Clock

This news item is one of many published daily by HATC, a premier subscription news service which distributes English-language info about Hungary via email or fax. For a free trial of HATC follow this link and click on 'Free Trial Subscription'.

  • How does this content make you feel?