Hoboken Bar Says ‘Lewd’ Sex Acts May Have Involved PA Cop

HOBOKEN, NJ — The lawyers for a Hoboken bar that was allegedly the site of illegal, “lewd” sex acts battled back on Monday with a bombshell allegation of their own: a Pennsylvania cop may have been involved.

After videos of a sex act that allegedly took place at The HUB in Hoboken on Sept. 8 made the rounds on social media, city authorities launched a probe that may result in its liquor license being revoked. Photos on social media showed a partially nude woman sitting on a bar with her legs spread, being touched by at least one man. Women were allegedly groped and penetrated with bottles during the heavily-attended event, NBC 4 reported.

Last week, Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla called the incident “an affront to human decency” and vowed to press for the shutdown of the bar.

• See related article: Videos Of Sex Acts At Hoboken Bar Allegedly On Internet (Updated)

But on Monday, the bar’s owners released a statement of their own after conducting an independent investigation. According to Jeffrey Garrigan of Cammarata, Nulty & Garrigan, LLC:

“Over the last week, The Hub has undertaken its own investigation and has identified the couple depicted in the videos. It is believed that the male is employed by the State of Pennsylvania as a law enforcement officer and it is our sincere hope that arrests are imminent for their lewd conduct which has seriously harmed our reputation. Our staff has been fully cooperating with the Hoboken Police Department and will continue to do so until the offenders are brought to justice and our excellent reputation restored. In the meantime, we will continue our investigation in the hope of determining who is responsible for placing these people at our establishment to engage in these shameful acts to our financial detriment.”

Garrigan said:

"The Hub would like to thank its friends and customers for all of the support they have received during this difficult time. As we all know, contrary to the comments made by some, the Hub would never condone much less promote the kind of offensive behavior exhibited by the two individuals in our establishment last weekend. In fact, as soon as the management and staff became aware of the deplorable behavior that was occurring, immediate steps were taken to remove the perpetrators from the club."

When Patch asked about what evidence identifies the man in the video as a police officer, Garrigan provided the following reply:

“He identified himself several times to staff as a police officer from Pennsylvania and flashed an official identification as he was being removed from the establishment.”

Hoboken Police Chief Ken Ferrante previously said that after reviewing videos and other records, investigators determined that ABC violations took place at the bar during the event.

According to Ferrante:

"On Sunday, September 9, the Hoboken Police Department was made aware of social media activity that was showing videos from incidents that had occurred inside The HUB (Hudson Ultra Bar at 16 Hudson Place) from late Saturday into early Sunday morning. The alleged activity occurred during a promotion called 'Supreme Saturdays at HUB.' According to the preliminary investigation, the promoter hired by The HUB that night is known as #theslutwhisperer, who has millions of viewers on social media. The Hoboken Police Alcohol Beverage Control Unit Investigators (ABC Unit), along with Hoboken Police Detectives, immediately began reviewing videos and comments from open source, social media. The videos obtained depict extremely graphic, lewd acts."

On Monday, Ferrante told Patch that the criminal investigation into the night’s alleged activities continues.

“We have been investigating that info about the PA trooper since before the HUB’s attorney sent that out today,” he said, referring to the bar’s allegations. “I am not at liberty to discuss any evidence now, but as individuals get charged, we will then announce that. We have the ABC administrative process and criminal investigation process and both will be conducted to their fullest with every bit of evidence provided for those two tracks at the appropriate time.”

Last week, city officials hit The HUB with 15 charges, including multiple counts of "assault, lewd activity and acts of violence."

• See related article: Hoboken Bar May Have License Yanked; Claims Of 'Lewd Activity'

A promotional Facebook post for the Sept. 8 event stated that it featured "Monthly Resident Host KIRILL," aka the @SlutWhisperer. (Story continues below)

Following the Sept. 8 event, the HUB's owners issued an apology and said that they are working with local authorities on their investigation.

The HUB wrote:

"On behalf of management, ownership, staff and all involved in our business, we would like to extend a sincere apology for the deplorable and unfortunate incident that took place on the evening of Saturday, September 8. The actions of the individuals are by no means behavior we allow, permit nor promote. The individuals involved were escorted out by management and security. We have allocated all of our resources and administrative personnel to this matter, in an effort to comply with the Hoboken PD and NJ Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Further, we are taking all necessary measures to prevent anything of this nature from occurring again."

The HUB, will have a chance to be heard by the ABC Board during its meeting on October 25. A final ruling on the license has not yet been made, but if the city's mayor has anything to say about it, The HUB's owners face an uphill battle.

"I have directed the ABC prosecutor to vigorously seek the permanent revocation of HUB's liquor license, the severest penalty available under the law," Bhalla said.

"Let this response serve to warn other bar owners that my administration will not tolerate this sort of behavior," the mayor continued. "This is not what Hoboken is about, it is not what the people of Hoboken deserve, and I simply will not allow it to happen again under my watch."

City officials had originally slated The HUB's hearing with the Hoboken Board of Alcoholic Beverage Control for September 20. That hearing was later adjourned to October 25. In exchange, the license holder of The HUB agreed to remain closed pending the outcome of the hearing.

Don’t forget to visit the Patch Hoboken Facebook page here. Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site here. Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com

Photo: Shutterstock