Owner of one of TripAdvisor's 'dirtiest hotels' busted on child sex charges

Daytona Beach, where hotel owner was busted on child sex charges.

 A Florida hotel has gone from dirty to disgusting.

The owner of a Daytona Beach hotel was arrested on child pornography charges for allegedly paying a 13-year-old boy to perform sex acts on video.

The same hotel - the Desert Inn Resort - was recently in the news for being named to TripAdvisor's 10-dirtiest hotels in the U.S. 

Daytona Beach police busted owner Dennis Devlin, 57, after a month-long investigation, according to the Daytona Beach News-Journal.

Also arrested was a 20-year-old hotel worker, Michael Ehman. Both men were targeted by cops after the boy issued a complaint. About 70 FBI agents and police officers raided the hotel on Feb. 2.

"It's disgusting and despicable what transpired with a 13-year-old boy," said Daytona Beach Police Chief Mike Chitwood. "I think he (Devlin) uses the hotel as a front for other sex crimes.

"What I do know is that this (the hotel) is a den of iniquity."

Devlin was charged with one count of promoting sexual activity with a child and one count of lewd and lascivious acts with a child. Ehman was charged with two counts of promoting sexual activity with a child and one count of lewd and lascivious acts with a child.

The boy told the FBI that Ehman had lured him by coming to his grandmother's house to recruit the boy for a job, reports the News-Journal.

The Desert Inn had a shady reputation even before Devlin's arrest. Located by the beach, it bills itself as a "family-friendly motel," but most of more than 260 customer reviews on TripAdvisor gave it a thumbs-down, calling it a "dump" and saying it was ridden with roaches, ants and a low-life clientele. It's No. 3 on this year's dirtiest-hotels list.

It's not the first time Devlin has been arrested on similar charges. Court records found by the News-Journal show Devlin was arrested six times between 1991 and 1996 for crimes that included offering teens money to pose for nude photos.

The News-Journal reported he was convicted in 1996 of lewd and lascivious conduct with a teenage boy, but the conviction was overturned when the boy recanted his accusations of molestation.

Devlin was denied bail in this latest incident. Daytona Police Chief Chitwood told the News-Journal he believes there are more victims.

"I have no doubt there are other victims," said Chitwood. "He (Devlin) preys on children who are runaways and who need money. In my opinion, it's been going on for years and years, and it came to a head last month."