City attorney files action to shut down La Jolla 'COVID party mansion'

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - The San Diego City Attorney's Office has filed a civil enforcement action to shut down a La Jolla vacation rental property where several raucous parties -- some of which drew up to 300 attendees -- were allegedly hosted in violation of state and county public health orders.

The oceanfront mansion at 9660 Black Gold Road has been the subject of at least 30 calls to San Diego police, with around a dozen of those calls occurring during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the City Attorney's Office, which said police have spent more than 173 hours investigating ``nuisance activity'' at the property.

The civil action seeks penalties and a permanent injunction against property owners Mousa Hussain Mushkor and Zahra Ali Kasim, property manager Nital Meshkoor, and Steven S. Barbarich, who leased the property from Mushkor and subleased it as a short-term rental.

In addition to claims of maintaining a public nuisance, the City Attorney's Office alleges the defendants are engaging in unfair competition, including false advertising.

The seven-bedroom mansion is listed on Airbnb for nearly $900 a night, and touts a ``safe, germ-free'' environment with ``superior cleaning,'' though the City Attorney's Office alleges inspectors found the property in squalid condition.

``Shutting down dangerous party houses protects the public health by preventing COVID super-spreader events and other illegal behavior,'' San Diego City Attorney Mara W. Elliott said. ``It's unfortunate that San Diego does not have short-term rental regulations in place. Relief for this neighborhood would have come much sooner. Instead, we must rely on time-intensive prosecutions at significant taxpayer expense.''

Elliott's office said police were called to one party for a report of gunfire, during which partygoers told officers shots were fired during a fight. Shell casings were found outside the mansion and a neighbor reported finding an additional casing the following day.

Other complaints to police included firearms at the property, assault, underage drinking and theft.

The mansion also allegedly featured a number of health and safety, building and fire code violations, including multiple electrical violations such as exposed and unprotected wiring, mosquito larvae in standing water, and excessive vegetation deemed a fire hazard.