Wisconsin man pleads guilty to squatting at Rochester hotel for months

(ABC 6 News) – A Wisconsin man pleaded guilty to felony theft by swindle nearly three years after squatting in a Rochester hotel.

Steven Travis Paige, formerly of Florida, was taken into custody in August of 2022.

Paige had spent roughly 90 days at Staybridge Suites in southwest Rochester without paying, according to court documents.

Hotel staff believed that Paige had been sleeping in unoccupied rooms, and had seen him in the hallways and communal areas over the past three months.

Paige failed to appear for a hearing in November of 2022, and was located in the Wisconsin Department of Corrections a few months ago.

Paige was sentenced to 5 years’ supervised probation and ordered to pay nearly $16,000 in restitution in Olmsted County Court May 7.

---

—–PREVIOUS STORY—–

(ABC 6 News) – A Florida man was arraigned in Olmsted County Court after being accused of squatting at Staybridge Suites in southwest Rochester for nearly three months without paying.

According to a criminal complaint, 55-year-old Steven Travis Paige is charged with felony theft by swindle and for giving false information to police after Rochester police were called to the hotel at 101 11th Ave. SW last Thursday due to a disturbance.

Staff said Paige had allegedly threatened them after refusing to answer their questions after he entered a room pretending to be a maintenance worker on Aug. 25.

The hotel guest complained to staff, who found Paige sitting in the lobby of the hotel and called police.

When police confronted Paige he told them his last name was Travis and that he did not have a middle name. He later admitted that Travis was his middle name but said he had only been staying at the hotel off and on for over a week.

Paige also told police he had multiple warrants for his arrest.

Hotel employees told police they believe he had been staying at the hotel for nearly 90 days with an estimated cost of $127 a night, totaling over $11,000. 

The employees said they had seen Paige over the last three months in the hallways, breakfast area, conference rooms, and other locations in the hotel.

Guests had also complained that the rooms they had just rented were dirty, or that someone was sleeping in the rooms when they opened the doors for the first time.

Hotel employees had been trying to determine who was using the freshly cleaned rooms, RPD communications officer Amanda Grayson said.

Paige is set to appear in court on Sept. 8.