Stolen Hilton Honors points let man live free at Florida hotel for weeks, deputies say

A man living the cushy life in a Florida hotel was arrested after someone in New York noticed their “Hilton Honors” points were being mysteriously used at a Hampton Inn, according to the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office.

An investigation revealed a 25-year-old Tampa man had been staying at the hotel for three weeks using stolen hotel points, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

It happened at the Hampton Inn in Spring Hill, 46 miles north of Tampa, and investigators say the suspect booked himself into the hotel May 17 using hotel honor points registered to more than a half dozen people.

Some still don’t know they were victimized, the sheriff’s office said.

“The hotel was made aware of the issue by a Hilton Honors member living in New York who was monitoring his account and reported the fraudulent activity,” the sheriff’s office said. “During that time hotel management was notified that Montgomery was using the Hilton Honors points of seven different people to pay his hotel bill.”

An investigation revealed the suspect reserved the hotel room through the Hilton Honors app and then used the points of the unknown victims to pay for it, according to the sheriff’s office.

The suspect told detectives he had never met any of the victims, officials said.

He was arrested and charged with criminal use of personal identification information and bond was set at $2,000.

“There may be additional charges, pending contact with the six remaining victims who live all across the United States,” the sheriff’s office said.

This story was originally published June 9, 2022 at 7:33 AM.