Airbnb ‘superhost’ attacks guests on holiday in LA, crashing through the window at 2am

The couple barricaded themselves in the kitchen armed with knives

A couple’s holiday to LA was ruined when their Airbnb host jumped through the window in the middle of the night while they were sleeping.

Chiedozie Uwandu, 28, and Jaleesa Jackson, 29, both medical residents in anaesthesiology from Boston, had booked through a “superhost”, a status Airbnb only gives to hosts who “go above and beyond” and are rated 4.8 or more.

The trip started well – superhost JJ left the pair a bottle of wine and a welcome note – but soon turned sour.

On their first night, Jackson was woken at 5.30am by someone banging loudly on the door, reports the Boston Globe.

She heard a man shout, “I know you’re in there Kevin,” and opened the door just wide enough to tell the man to go away before slamming it shut.

Jackson immediately rang their superhost to report the bizarre incident; JJ responded, “Yeah, that was me. Sorry about the confusion. Life’s too short for me to give you an explanation. Have a nice time in LA.”

The couple tried to forget the encounter and enjoy their day relaxing on the beach. However, the next night things took a more alarming turn when, at 2am, a man came crashing through the bedroom window, showering shards of glass across the floor.

Jaleesa Jackson and Chiedozie Uwandu’s Airbnb holiday turned into a nightmare (Facebook/Jaleesa Jackson)

“I had no idea what was happening,” Uwandu told the Globe. “But I reacted like we were under attack.”

Thinking it was a burglar, he pinned the man to the floor and shouted to Jackson to call the police.

But on seeing his face Jackson recognised the assailant as JJ, their host.

Uwandu loosened his grip to brush glass off his feet, which were bleeding, and JJ took the opportunity to break free and flee the room.

The couple barricaded themselves in the kitchen, armed with knives, and waited for the police to arrive.

They soon found the errant host, who alleged the couple needed to pay for cleaning. “He told the police that Airbnb had ordered him to evict us, over cleaning fees,” Uwandu said.

It transpired that JJ did not have permission to rent the property out at all, as he himself was renting it from an elderly woman who had not given him authorisation.

Airbnb offered to refund the couple and rehouse them at another Airbnb property at no extra cost, but Uwandu and Jackson opted to check into the local Hilton instead.

They requested $5,000 compensation from the company for the trauma they underwent; Airbnb has offered $2,500 and five sessions of therapy instead.

An Airbnb spokesperson told The Independent: “Our original handling of this incident fell well below the high standards we set for ourselves.

“We have apologised to Dr Jackson and Dr Uwandu for our insufficient response. We are currently working with them to make this right, and we are reviewing every aspect of this case from the reports of the host’s disturbing behaviour to our response.

“Our community’s safety is our priority, we are deeply sorry for the anguish and inconvenience our guests have experienced and again we are working to make it right.”

The online homesharing platform said it has developed a number of features to help guests in times of need, including a customer experience team that works in every time zone.