Birmingham strip club facing criminal probe after 'customers were offered sex, drugged and ripped off'

Critical joint police and licensing report alleges 'serious criminality' at the city centre club

In one case, a customer claimed £19,400 was put through on their credit card without their knowledge (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Strip club customers were allegedly drugged and fleeced of up to £93,000 and offered sex in camera-less rooms, according to a report.

One punter at Birmingham's Legs 11 lap dancing bar was so worried their drink had been spiked after £9,000 was charged to their credit card that they bought a home drugs kit which tested positive for methadone.

A critical joint police and licensing report into alleged "serious criminality" at the city centre club also revealed that undercover trading standards officers "were offered sexual services" in a locked VIP rooms for £1,000.

Internal CCTV showed dancers "gyrating" against a customer's body, "whipping him in his crotch area" with his belt, and "holding his nose ... as if to restrict his breathing", trading standards officers reported.

West Midlands Police also reported that "intelligence checks" had indicated a link to "organised crime groups from Albania".

The Birmingham City Council report, compiled by trading standards, is recommending the lap dancing club's licence be suspended, with a decision due on Monday.

Setting out the scope of possible criminal activity, West Midlands Police said they were investigating financial "irregularities" where "large volumes of money were being taken from people's accounts".

Superintendent Andrew Parsons said there had been 17 separate allegations totalling £93,042, going back to 2013.

In one case, a customer claimed £19,400 was put through on their credit card without their knowledge.

Another alleged "bouncers threatened to beat them up if they didn't pay".

The report also detailed how people were allegedly charged a 10% flat rate on card transactions.

He added that the incident caught on the club's own CCTV "appeared to corroborate previous reports that the dancers were getting the males very drunk and then getting them to use their credit cards".

A company linked to the premises' card transactions found £1.6 million had been "credited" to the firm since January 2017, around the time the current licence was renewed.

The police report concluded: "These premises are involved in serious criminality and serious offences are being committed at the premises."

PA