Airline pilot sues Denver hotel after waking up to bats in his room and a bite on his foot

Normally this time of year you’re likely to see a ton of miller moths around Denver, but for some reason, this summer there seems to be more bats than moths…

A commercial airline pilot has filed a lawsuit against the Sheraton Denver Hotel Downtown after he says he woke up in the middle of the night to bats flying around his 22nd-floor room — and discovered one had bitten him on the foot.

The incident actually happened in August 2025 at the hotel at 1550 Court Place, Denver’s largest hotel with more than 1,200 rooms. The pilot, who asked not to be identified for fear of job repercussions, called hotel maintenance to remove the bats that night, but his attorney, Ed Lomena, says workers missed at least one — and never sealed a hole under the air conditioner where the bats are believed to have entered. The hotel also did not move the pilot to a different room. When he woke up the next morning, a bat was hanging upside down from the curtain rod.

Denver Animal Control was called to remove the remaining bat and take it for rabies testing. The pilot photographed what he says was a bite mark on his foot and underwent rabies treatment. Medical bills show he was billed nearly $100,000 for rabies vaccines and treatment, which was covered by his insurance. Lomena said the experience left his client fearing for his life. “He was scared he was going to die and leave his family without a father,” Lomena told CBS Colorado. The pilot now says he has difficulty sleeping in hotels — a significant problem for someone whose job requires it.

The incident came about a month after Denver Animal Protection had warned the public about two rabid bats found in Denver in July 2025. W Hotel Management, the lead defendant in the suit, has denied wrongdoing or liability.