A nightclub manager who told a teenage girl she wasn’t ‘worth’ having her drink spiked because she was ‘not attractive’ has finally apologised.
Neil Temple Scott, 66, ridiculed Shantel Smith, 19, who complained to Rapture Nightclub in Perth that her drink was spiked on Saturday night.
Instead of addressing her concerns or apologising for what had allegedly happened, he dismissed her claim as a ‘beat up’ and demanded proof.
Despite hundreds of punters slamming his comments, Mr Scott then doubled down, posting CCTV of Ms Smith entering and leaving the club.
Neil Temple Scott, 66, ridiculed a young patron who complained to Rapture Nightclub in Perth that her drink was spiked on Saturday night
Shantel Smith, 19, said she visited Rapture, in Perth’s Northbridge entertainment district, on Saturday night and believes someone slipped something into her drink
He claimed it was ‘implausible’ that someone spiked her drink because she was a ‘plain Jane’ and ‘not a particularly attractive girl’.
Finally, after four days of intense public pillorying and calls to boycott his club, Mr Scott issued a grovelling apology on Wednesday.
Mr Scott explained that Rapture’s ‘legendary’ customer care meant he ‘could not believe the story’ and saw her claim as ‘a takedown of the nightclub’.
‘I got upset and sent a terse reply, calling her out in a sarcastic and demeaning way, which I regret. It was beneath my dignity,’ he said.
‘I am sorry. I should have swallowed my disbelief and not let emotion rule my head.’
However, though he apologised for his universally-condemned reply to Ms Smith, he appeared to stick to his guns in his disbelief of her claim.
‘I went and looked at the security video and found the girl had been in the club for almost three hours,’ he said.
Shantel Smith, 19, said she visited Rapture, in Perth’s Northbridge entertainment district, on Saturday night and believes someone slipped something into her drink
‘The video showed the girl leaving the club in jovial spirits and she stayed in front of the club showing no signs of drink spiking or sickness.’
Mr Scott made similar commentary when posting the CCTV footage to his personal Facebook page on Monday before taking it down hours later.
He also said Ms Smith told none of his staff her drink was spiked, and they had also never heard of two other alleged incidents she mentioned in her message.
‘My advice to anyone who suspects that their drink has been spiked in any situation should immediately contact a staff member of the venue and seek help,’ he said.
‘At a minimum say something to the crowd controllers on the way out. This will give us the opportunity to catch the perpetrators of the drink spiking.’
Mr Scott’s apology was a marked departure from disparaging comments he made just 36 hours earlier ridiculing Ms Smith.
‘Lets face it, why would somebody spike her drink? Why would they do that? What are they hoping to get? What is she hoping to get from it?’ he told 9 News.
‘I don’t know if she thinks she’s special enough to be spiked, I don’t know if that’s how it works.’
Mr Scott then told the West Australian the ‘plain Jane’ teenager had more than likely made up the story for attention.
‘She’s not a particularly attractive girl. It’s just implausible to imagine that she had her drink spiked, it just doesn’t sort of add up.’
‘She’s just a very plain Jane type of girl. I can’t understand why anybody would be possessed by her.’
Mr Scott early on Monday morning he posted CCTV of Ms Smith entering the leaving the club to support his claim that her drink was never spiked
Mr Smith had held court with the media on the footpath outside Rapture in an belated attempt to stick up for his business, but just made things worse.
The furore began on Sunday when Ms Smith posted his response to Instagram and the social media pages of both Rapture and Mr Scott were bombarded with negative comments.
Early on Monday morning he posted CCTV of Ms Smith at the club, claiming it as proof her drink couldn’t have been spiked.
‘The large girl with the white top, the short black skirt and the black and white shoes is Shantel Smith, the girl who claimed to have had her drink spiked,’ he wrote.
‘She can be seen entering Rapture Nightclub at 10.58pm and leaving at 2.53am. Note none of her friends seems perturbed at all.
‘She seems in good spirits and did not leave the club once in the 2 hours 55 minutes of attendance. Nor did she seek help or assistance from any of the 14 staff on duty.’
Ms Smith claimed to have been unconscious and throwing up for two and a half hours after her first drink at Rapture.
Victims of GHB and other ‘date rape’ drugs usually only feel the effects for about three hours, or potentially less if they vomit some of it before it is absorbed.
When she reported the alleged incident to the venue, Rapture Nightclub in Perth, it sent her this response instead of apologising
What Ms Smith sent Rapture’s Facebook page after her night out that prompted Mr Scott’s response
Then another conversation soon emerged showing the club making a disgusting comment to a woman who asked about the dress code.
‘Hey are black sweatpants acceptable to wear?’ she asked.
‘If you get stopped at the door, just take them off. I’m sure that will be ok. Make sure you wear a gstring,’ the club’s Facebook page replied.
Ms Smith said she visited Rapture, in Perth’s Northbridge entertainment district, on Saturday night and believes someone slipped something into her drink.
‘The response I received was absolutely disgusting after the message I sent them was extremely polite and just requesting they increase their security,’ she said.
Ms Smith said she only had two or three drinks before arriving and only had one drink inside before she became unwell.
Another conversation soon emerged allegedly showing the nightclub making a disgusting comment to a woman who asked about the dress code
‘I was then unconscious for the next two and a half hours, vomiting, and experiencing other common symptoms of a date rape drug,’ she said.
Ms Smith said she didn’t see any bouncers near the bar and suggested the club beef up its security to protect its reputation.
Instead of addressing her concerns or apologising for what allegedly happened, the club instead fired back.
‘Why would anyone want to spike your drink? Did you attend a hospital and have your stomach pumped for evidence?’ the response read.
‘Is this something you and your friends experience regularly? Would you like a crowd controller to hold your drink for you next time you attend a nightclub?
‘Do you think ten crowd controllers would be able to stop you having your drink spiked?
Rapture is in Perth’s Northbridge entertainment district and its Facebook page was soon bombarded with hundreds of negative reviews
‘Are you worth someone trying to spike your drink?
‘We think this is a beat up and we believe that no one would be stupid enough to waste their drugs on spiking anyone’s drink.’
Ms Smith was astonished by the reply to what was a polite, if unhappy, complaint and posted the message on social media.
Rapture’s Facebook page was soon bombarded with hundreds of negative reviews slamming the club’s response.
A petition was even launched to shut down the club and turn the building into a homeless shelter or women’s refuge.