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Fort Worth officials target crime-ridden motel in lawsuit
The City of Fort Worth has filed a lawsuit against a motel said to be a hotbed for crime, and says it is still trying to serve the building's owner with that litigation. FOX 4's Dionne Anglin has more.
FORT WORTH, Texas - The city of Fort Worth has filed a lawsuit against a motel for being a nuisance and a drain on public resources.
What we know:
Fort Worth Police Chief Eddie Garcia, the city’s attorney, and others addressed the Central Motel on East Lancaster Road in Fort Worth on Tuesday.
They explained the nuisance abatement lawsuit that now aims to end its chronic drain on city resources.
The filing states that the "lives of the brave men and women of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies are unnecessarily put in harm’s way every time they respond to a call related to this property."
By the numbers:
Police have responded to the Central Motel 591 times since 2024.
Chief Garcia said that includes a murder in 2025, an arson in 2025, 80 narcotics cases, seven weapons offenses, seven aggravated assaults, multiple prostitution offenses, and many more theft, vandalism, criminal trespassing, auto theft, and burglary cases.
What they're saying:
"We’ve met with the ownership of this motel two separate times about the crime since 2020, the last time being in 2022. This lawsuit is requesting the court to order the property owners to take control of their property and implement reasonable measures to reduce the crime on their property, including hiring security," Chief Brown explained.
"We never want to have to go into litigation unless we have no other choice. In this case, we have met with them and provided them with recommendations on what they should do. They didn’t do any of the things we recommended, or I should say they didn’t do them to the level that would abate the nuisance," said Senior Assistant City Attorney Benjamin Sampract.
The other side:
FOX 4 reached out to the motel’s owner, Haribhai Patel, by phone and email for his response but did not hear back.
According to public records, Patel lives in an upscale home in the Las Colinas area of Irving in Dallas County.
What's next:
The city of Fort Worth is now asking the court for a temporary injunction, which could involve more fines for the Central Motel, the closure of the property for one year pending litigation, and possibly revoking its certificate of occupancy if it does not comply with the demands.
The Source: The information in this story was provided by the city of Fort Worth and the Fort Worth Police Department during a news conference.