DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MS. SMYSER:
MS. SMYSER: Good afternoon, Mr. Zemmour.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Good afternoon.
MS. SMYSER: Where do you work?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: I work at L'Ermitage Beverly Hills.
MS. SMYSER: If you can just make sure to speak into the mic. Thank you.
What is the L'Ermitage Beverly Hills?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It's a luxury hotel in Beverly Hills, California.
MS. SMYSER: How long have you worked at the L'Ermitage Hotel?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Since April of 2019.
MS. SMYSER: What is your role there?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: I'm the general manager of the hotel.
MS. SMYSER: How long have you been the general manager?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: For and a year and a half now.
MS. SMYSER: What are some of your responsibilities as the general manager of the L'Ermitage?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: I handle day-to-day operation of the hotel, financial strategy of the hotel, and certain marketing strategy of the hotel.
MS. SMYSER: And why are testifying here today, Mr. Zemmour?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: I'm testifying because I received a subpoena.
MS. SMYSER: I want to talk about some records from the L'Ermitage Hotel.
Ms. Foster, could you please pull up Government Exhibit 1304, which is a stipulation between the parties. Could you please turn to page 7 and zoom in on paragraph 45. Sorry. Page 8. Thank you. Paragraph 45.
Government Exhibits 7H-101 through 7H-188, including the subdivisions thereof, are true and accurate records from LBVH Hotel LLC, doing business as L'Ermitage Beverly Hills, 9291 Burton Way, Beverly Hills, California 90210.
Your Honor, at this point the government offers Government Exhibits 7H-101, 7H-102, and 7H-153.
MS. GERAGOS: No objection.
THE COURT: These exhibits will be admitted.
(Government Exhibits 7H-101, 7H-102, and 7H-153 received in evidence)
MS. SMYSER: You can take that down, Ms. Foster.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, as general manager of the L'Ermitage, are you familiar with the hotel's reservation system?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: Could you please explain what happens on your end when a guest makes a reservation?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: We have a system called OPERA. We have a reservation agent at the hotel, and they would enter the guest information in the system, creating a profile.
MS. SMYSER: Are those profiles for individual guests?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: When are those profiles generated?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: At the time of reservation, when the guest calls to make a reservation.
MS. SMYSER: Could you please explain what kinds of information are contained on those guest profiles.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. Guest personal information such as name, first name, last name, email address, phone numbers, credit card information, and then guest preferences, personal preferences for room types, dietary restrictions, and things like that.
MS. SMYSER: Who inputs those personal preferences into the system?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: The reservation agent taking the reservation.
MS. SMYSER: How long do those notes regarding personal preferences remain in the system?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: They stay forever.
MS. SMYSER: I want to look at some specific examples.
Ms. Foster, could you please pull up what's in evidence as Government Exhibit 7H-101.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, I want to focus on the first five pages of this document. Could you please just explain what we are looking at here.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: We are looking at all the reservations starting 2008 for the guest name Ryan Lopez.
MS. SMYSER: Is there an additional name associated with this guest profile?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: Who is that?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sean Combs.
MS. SMYSER: What does each row in these boxes represent?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: The first one is the name of the reservation. The second one is the alternative name of the reservation. Second one is arrival date. Third one, departure date. The fourth one is the status of the room, then room number, the room type, and how many people are in the room.
MS. SMYSER: Does each row in the box represent one reservation?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes. Each row is an individual reservation.
MS. SMYSER: The first name listed here is Ryan Lopez. Is Ryan Lopez the name of the person who is actually staying in these rooms?
MS. SMYSER: What is the name of the person for whom these reservations were made?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It would be Sean Combs.
MS. SMYSER: How do you know that?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Because the alternative name says Sean Combs and that would be the name of the person in the room.
MS. SMYSER: In this document is Ryan Lopez the name used for all of the reservations?
MS. SMYSER: Is the name used for all of the reservations associated with the Ryan Lopez profile in this particular document?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: Based on your review of additional records for the Ryan Lopez profile, do you know if all of the records were reservations that were actually made under the name Ryan Lopez?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: There were different names.
MS. SMYSER: How do you know that?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Through the daily log on the back end of the system we can see the changes made to the profile.
MS. SMYSER: We are going to look through that log in just a moment. But just generally, how does it happen that the profile reflects that the Ryan Lopez name made this reservation, even if he was not the one to have actually made it?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Well, the profile will reflect the name of the person who made the reservation. If there is a name that needs to be changed, or on our side we realized that the other person stays in the room, we can also combine profiles.
MS. SMYSER: Please explain why you would merge profiles in the way that you're talking about.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It's an operation. It's to make sure that the guest traces that we talked about earlier, personal preferences, follows the profile. It's to make sure that we can customize surveys and create a better experience for our guests.
MS. SMYSER: When you merge profiles together, do those notes about preferences also merge together?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: And when you merge profiles together, do they then have one name for that profile?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes. They come under the last name associated with the profile.
MS. SMYSER: I want to look next at Government Exhibit 7H-102.
MS. SMYSER: Is this the activity log that you were referencing earlier?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes. That's the back-end log of OPERA.
MS. SMYSER: Is this for the Ryan Lopez profile?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: What kinds of information does this document contain?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It shows the name change on the profile.
MS. SMYSER: I want to turn to the last page in this document, Ms. Foster. Could you zoom in on the bottom line.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, what is the name under which this profile was originally created?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Under Sean Combs.
MS. SMYSER: When was it created?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: December 6, 2006.
MS. SMYSER: Was there a website that was associated with this creation?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It says www.badboy.ent.com.
MS. SMYSER: Now I want to direct your attention to the third row from the bottom here.
MS. SMYSER: Ms. Foster, can you zoom in on that. It's dated June 1, 2007. Ms. Foster, can you zoom in on that. I'm sorry. The one dated September 30, 2009.
MS. SMYSER: Was the name changed on this date for the profile?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: What was it changed from and what was it changed to?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It was changed from Sean Combs to Jackie Starr.
MS. SMYSER: I want to now look at the second page of this document.
Ms. Foster, we are going to be looking at the middle of the page, specifically between the dates of September 1, 2011 and January 13, 2012, if you could just zoom in.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, could you walk us through the name changes on this profile during this period of time?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. The name would change September 1, 2011 from Jackie Starr to Sean Combs; then November 4 from Sean Combs back to Jackie Starr; and then November 5, from Jackie Starr to Frank White; then Frank White to Sean Combs; then January 4, 2012, from Sean Combs to Jackie Starr; and then on January 13, 2012, from Jackie Starr to Frank Black; and then January 14 from Frank Black to Frank White.
MS. SMYSER: Ms. Foster, can you zoom out and let's turn to page 1 and focus on the top three lines.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, could you walk us through the name changes during this period of time.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. January 12, 2016, the name was changed from Sean Combs to Mr. Black. Same day it was changed to Mr. Black, to Frank Black. And then January 19, 2019, it was changed from Frank Black to Ryan Lopez.
MS. SMYSER: Ms. Foster can we now return back to Government Exhibit 7H-101.
MS. SMYSER: I want to walk through an example of a reservation.
MS. SMYSER: Let's turn to page 2 and go to April 7, 2015. There is a reservation in the bottom box, third row from the top.
MS. SMYSER: Do you see this, Mr. Zemmour?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: So earlier we talked about the names here: Ryan Lopez and Sean Combs. Could you explain to us what the remainder of the columns mean for this particular reservation.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. April 7, 2015 is the check-in date, when the guest arrived at the hotel. April 8, 2015 is the check-out date, when guest departed the hotel. Checked out is an indication for us in the system that the room is vacant and ready to be cleaned and prepared for another guest. 517 was the room number. GDLX means grand deluxe is a type of room. And one would be the number of people in the room.
MS. SMYSER: Ms. Foster, could you please pull up Government Exhibit 7H-153.
MS. SMYSER: What is this document, generally?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: This is what we call a guest folio. It's the invoice that the guest receives once they checked out of the hotel.
MS. SMYSER: How does this guest folio relate to the reservation that we were just talking about?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It's attached to the guest profile.
MS. SMYSER: I want to focus on the top left here. What is the name listed?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Mr. Ryan Lopez.
MS. SMYSER: Based on your review of the activity log, was this reservation actually made under the name Ryan Lopez?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: No. It's the last name that appeared on the profile due to the change of profile name on January 19.
MS. SMYSER: What is the address under Mr. Lopez's name?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: 1440 Broadway, third floor, New York, 10018, United States.
MS. SMYSER: Focusing on the top right, what's the room number?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: 517.
MS. SMYSER: And what's the arrival and departure dates?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: April 7, 2015 for departure of April 8, 2015.
MS. SMYSER: Is this document essentially the bill for that reservation?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: Turning to page 2, what is the total bill for this reservation?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Total was $2,381.69.
MS. SMYSER: Ms. Foster, could we please return to Government Exhibit 7H-101 and turn to page 3.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, earlier you mentioned that profiles have notes associated with them, is that right?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Correct.
MS. SMYSER: I want to direct your attention to the portion of this document that says profile note. Is that what you were referring to?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: First, I want to focus on the section labeled FD. What does FD stand for?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Front desk.
MS. SMYSER: Where did these notes come from?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: These notes from either a travel agent or people making the reservation, or it can also be from our team members adding notes for special requests from guests.
MS. SMYSER: Is this document organized by different parts of the hotel where the information comes from?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, could you please focus on that first bullet under FD. Could you read it for us, please.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It says: Per JR, guest can only stay and reserve VSJ, VBS, SKY. Suites can't be sold for occupancy. Please see JR with any questions.
MS. SMYSER: What does that mean to you?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It means that the notes is for the front desk that we can only reserve a certain type of rooms for that guest.
MS. SMYSER: What are the types of rooms that can be reserved?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Those are entry-level rooms of the hotel.
MS. SMYSER: I want to direct your attention to the third bullet here that starts aka. Could you please read that.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. Aka Sean Combs/P. Diddy.
MS. SMYSER: Why is this a note here?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: If the guest stays under a different name, so we know who is in the room.
MS. SMYSER: Looking at the fourth bullet starting CPRG, could you please read that.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. CPRG, SPRG on approval only. Use American Express 9004 only if Eli Maroun, Dave Shirley, or Kristina Khorram approve. MH December 1, 2016.
MS. SMYSER: What does CPRG or SPRG mean?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It's a code for nonregistered guests.
MS. SMYSER: What do you understand this bullet to be saying?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: That means we can only put the reservation preregistered guests. Preregistered guests would be a guest that doesn't follow the proper check-in process because they are not presenting credit cards or an ID during the check-in process. This is given prior to arrival to the hotel.
MS. SMYSER: Is this saying you could only be a preregistered guess if Eli Maroun, Dave Shirley, or Kristina Khorram approve?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: Let's focus now on the bottom two bullets here. Could you please read those.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Always spill candle wax on everything and uses excessive amounts of oil, place the room out of order upon departure for deep cleaning. Please authorize an extra $1,000 when guest stays with us to cover any room damages.
MS. SMYSER: Could you please zoom out, Ms. Foster. Could you focus on the F and B section.
MS. SMYSER: What is F and B?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Food and beverage.
MS. SMYSER: Could you please read just the first line.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. Amenity, fruit and water plus VHG chocolate, June 3, 2015.
MS. SMYSER: What does that mean?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: That is the food and beverage we place in the room prior to the guest arriving, so in that case it would mean a bowl of fruit, a bottle of water, and a box of chocolate.
MS. SMYSER: Can we please zoom out and go to page 4 and zoom in on HSKP, that section.
MS. SMYSER: What is HSKP?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: It stands for housekeeping.
MS. SMYSER: I want to focus you on the second, third, and fourth bullets here. Could you please read those.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Please monitor outside his room. Down the hall to spray air freshener. Likes the room hot. Set thermostat to 75. Place a portable heater in the room prior to arrival.
MS. SMYSER: You can zoom out.
MS. SMYSER: I want to direct your attention to the bottom where it says history. What is this section about?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: This is general note about prior stays.
MS. SMYSER: Do these sometimes reflect employee complaints about the stays?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Those are comments made by employees.
MS. SMYSER: Do they reflect all the concerns that hotel staff has about guests, or just some of them?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Just some of them.
MS. SMYSER: Let's turn to the next page, and we will read an example.
Could you zoom in on the January 10 date.
MS. SMYSER: Could you please read this entry, Mr. Zemmour.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Sure. January 10, 2010. Room number 804 under the name Starr. Housekeeping contacted MOD at approximately 14:45, stating room attendant noticed wax from candles while executing daily service. MOD inspected room and found large deposits of candle wax on carpets in living room area and on the nightstands in bedroom area. Pictures taken. Security to complete incident report. Miscellaneous charge of $500 posted to resident's account for damage/cleaning. SKR.
MS. SMYSER: What is MOD here?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Manager on duty.
MS. SMYSER: Mr. Zemmour, are these notes documenting damage to a room on a particular occasion?
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Yes.
MS. SMYSER: No further questions, your Honor.
THE COURT: Cross-examination.
MR. DONALDSON: One second, your Honor.
No. Thank you very much for your time.
THE COURT: Thank you very much. You are done.
FREDERIC ZEMMOUR: Thank you.
(Witness excused)
THE COURT: Government may call its next witness.
MS. JOHNSON: Your Honor, the government calls Special Agent Josh Croft. JOSHUA CROFT, called as a witness by the Government, having been duly sworn, testified as follows:
MS. JOHNSON: Your Honor, before I begin, may I approach the witness?
THE COURT: You may.