California Man Sues After Being Stung by a Scorpion at the Las Vegas Venetian
Luxury Las Vegas hotel the Venetian is facing a personal injury lawsuit after a California man says he was stung by a scorpion during his stay at the resort last year.
Sixty-one-year-old Michael Farchi of Agoura Hills was vacationing on the Las Vegas strip with his family when he says at around 8:00 am on December 26, he woke up with sudden, excruciating pain in his groin area. He rushed to the bathroom to examine himself and found an orange scorpion dangling from the front of his boxer briefs. Farchi and his attorney have shared an image of the scorpion with the critter appearing to be a little over an inch long.
During an interview with his local news station, Los Angeles KABC, Farchi shared, “I woke up with sharp pain in my private area,” adding he “Didn’t know what it was. I reached my hand to see what was happening under the covers and got another sharp pain.”
Farchi was treated for his sting at a local hospital which diagnosed him with multiple scorpion stings on his testicles. Farchi would go on to file a report with the hotel. However, he says the hotel staff “were very dismissive and unapologetic.”
The Venetian “didn’t even apologize for what happened when I met with the hotel manager, and they just charged me for my room, the restaurant, and whatever I used. No apologies. No nothing. This has made me very angry,” Farchi shared during his interview.
Farchi’s attorney Brian Virag also shared, "Nobody staying in Vegas needs to be exposed to deadly scorpions while they're sleeping, let alone on their private parts, their testicles."
The resort has responded to calls for comments with the statement, “To preserve the privacy of our guests, we're unable to comment on this incident. The resort has protocols for all incidents and we can confirm they were followed in this incident.”
Scorpions are not uncommon throughout the Las Vegas Strip, as Nevada is home to a variety of venomous and harmless scorpions. According to the National Library of Medicine, less than 10% of scorpion stings cause systemic symptoms like fever, body aches, or fatigue. Those that do cause such symptoms can be life-threatening. It is unclear what species stung Farchi during his stay.
Farchi is suing the hotel for unspecified damages.
