ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — Thirty minutes after an Action News Jax investigation first aired Tuesday, Airbnb announced it removed the listing of a local man accused of child sex crimes.
Virgil Badie Jr., 41, was arrested in July after he allegedly used an app to meet up with a 16-year-old boy in Clay County for sex.
He was expected in court Tuesday, but waived his appearance.
The company had no idea about the charges until we started asking questions.
Action News Jax learned he had his Nocatee home listed on Airbnb four months after his arrest.
In July, deputies said Badie and the teen met through an app and Badie would visit the teen, sneaking in through his window.
Badie has pleaded not guilty to charges of unlawful sexual activity with minors.
But parents like Jennifer Stellmacher called this troubling to hear.
“[It’s] a little concerning that the community maybe isn’t informed about it, and that it is so close to the parks where everybody has access,” Stellmacher said.
Action News Jax brought this to the homeowner’s association, which said this was a clear violation.
Airbnb sent Action News Jax this statement:
"The safety of the Airbnb community is the most important thing we work on every day. While no background check system—including the government's—is perfect, we run background checks against US hosts and guests looking for prior felony convictions, sex offender registrations, and significant misdemeanors. We immediately removed this individual from our platform and are reviewing what happened here."