Albert Trummer – owner of celebrity hotspot DOM – is fighting to clear his name after his investor Arndt Oesterle accused him of overseeing a ‘live sex show’ and allowing open drug use on site in an explosive lawsuit filed last month.
Trummer claims this is just a ploy to take over his club and is now threatening legal action himself.
He alleged to Page Six that Oesterle threatened him last year after he failed to sign an “unfavorable agreement” that would have made him the sole owner of the Gramercy Park spot.
“He wants to have my intellectual property. He wants to kick me out and take over the place,” Trummer told us.
Oesterle filed a lawsuit against Trummer last month, alleging in court filings that he used the club “as his personal piggy bank,” among other allegations including “facilitating cocaine use at the bar and hosting shows of live sex without a license on the premises”.
The lawsuit also claims there is evidence on the club’s cameras, including video of Trummer’s son at the bar with patrons allegedly doing drugs in the open.
“These photos are not proof. I’m talking to my legal team and we absolutely want to counter the allegations. He has no proof of anything! Trummer replied.
He also denied supervising live sex shows, telling us, “DOM ain’t the club,” referring to the controversial Lower East Side club known for its racy burlesque shows.
DOM opened in 2022 and has hosted parties for stars like Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys and the cast of “Saturday Night Live.”
Oesterle claims in his lawsuit that he helped finance the business in August 2020 by shelling out “an initial capital contribution of $1,685,595.00.”
Since then, he has “made additional capital contributions to the company, for a total contribution of approximately $1.8 million,” his lawsuit states.
But Trummer insists Oesterle is not a co-owner and says he only invested in a “very expensive sound system” and “$800,000 worth of Cappellini furniture,” which he allegedly confiscated.
“He didn’t invest in me! He invested in his own furniture and sound system and took it back,” Trummer said.
Trummer told us he learned about Oesterle’s lawsuit from a “New York Post court reporter” and an email from his lawyer last Friday.
The cocktail guru commented to Page Six: “This lawsuit is malicious… It’s very sad that the person I trust and have known for 20 years is putting this allegation forward.” This is very sad and disrespectful.
“He can’t prove anything!” Don’t throw a stone at a glass house,” he warned. The nightlife genius was also once behind Chinatown’s trendy club Apotheke.
Oesterle’s lawyers did not respond to us by deadline. DOM is currently still operational at the moment.
New York Post
