Remnant of ‘Suite 16’ is headed to New York

The last of the Suite 16 Girls have left Maricopa.

Krystal Callendar Laman and her two remaining recruits are believed to be on the road somewhere between Arizona and New York, several months ahead of schedule.

And that has at least one of the women’s families worried.

Initially, when Laman and the Suite 16 Girls arrived in Maricopa in mid February, press releases stated that 16 women would live together in a house dubbed “Suite 16” for five weeks while forming a band and filming an accompanying reality television show.

The community greeted them warmly with support from city officials, local businesses and others who wished them well by supporting their charity car wash for Against Abuse Inc., inviting them to appear at local events such as the Mutt March and a local shopping center’s family festival. They sang at Maricopa Elementary School and offered tips to high school students working on a play.

When city officials offered Laman and her recruits the use of Pacana Park to stage a charity concert, Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino Hotel Resort allowed them to promote the event by showing up to a Friday Night Pool Party in bikinis and performing a short song.

Xtreme Fitness offered free personal training and gym time to help them get into shape, while Copa Tan provided complimentary access to the salon to achieve and maintain a sun-kissed look. Others provided everything from transportation to energy drinks, furniture and more.

It was such generosity, Laman said, that led to her decision to extend their stay in Maricopa to six months.

Eleven weeks in, however, Laman and the two remaining of nine women who participated in Suite 16 – who now go by the name Phoenix Rayne – are believed to be headed to New York in a mini van they borrowed from a Maricopa resident.

Whether they paid rent before leaving, or left behind furniture local businesses and residents donated, or three large suitcases filled with clothes belonging to Rebecca Olejniczak of Green Bay, Wisc., who quit the group while home on a break, is not known.

Olejniczak has been unable to reclaim what is likely thousands of dollars worth of clothing because Laman has refused to ship them to her.

“It makes me sick,” said Pam Goddard, the mother of former Suite 16 Girl Whitney Goddard. The two are still in contact with many of the women, but some have stopped speaking with them because of hard feelings over the nearly total breakup of the group.

Goddard also pointed out that she was privvy to details regarding three lease agreements, and knew that at least one of them was for six months, with a two-month’s rent penalty for leaving early.

“I’d love to know if she paid it,” she said.

Because the women lived in three houses, including one they moved into after many of the all-female vocal group’s had already quit, exactly where those belongings might be – if they are still in Maricopa – remains a mystery.

And, because the two “missing” women are of legal age, their location will also remain unknown to concerned family members – unless the women choose otherwise.

Sergeant Mary Turner, who handles criminal investigations for Maricopa Police, said the only way they could take on a missing person’s case on behalf of someone who is 18 or older would be if there was reason to believe the adult was in immediate danger.

A concerned mom called a reporter early Friday to report that she feared just that.

“Krystal is headed to New York with my daughter,” she said, adding that she would prefer not to see her daughter’s name, or hers, in print.

“This is what scares me: I have no way of knowing anything, no contact, nothing, except that she is headed to New York,” she continued. “I’m scared that my daughter is heading for disaster.”

Part of her concern stems from Laman’s connection to a Tempe night club where she says the girls were offered alcohol after being told someone had paid $5,000 for them to spend the evening in the VIP room. Many of the women are not yet 21, and according to her daughter’s report, no one was checking ID. Laman is listed as the contact at the club for those who wish to reserve VIP bottle service.

In addition, the sexy image of the Suite 16 Girls of 2004, a dance troupe Laman put together in New York under the premise that they were shooting a reality show for Spike TV, gave the mother more reason for pause. As any mother might, she expressed concern whether sex, drugs, more alcohol or other snares might lie ahead, making it difficult for her daughter to escape once involved.

The woman said she’d learned on Thursday from a third party that the trio had already made it as far as Texas. “At this point, she has got her God knows where,” she said early Friday.

By Friday evening, the woman said she had been on the phone most of the day trying to come up with a plan to get through to her daughter, including a conversation with Goddard and with Turner (see “Mother of former Suite 16 Girl speaks out”).

“Today was just one of those days,” she said, sounding worn out from the stress of worry.

Because her daughter is legally an adult, she knows there isn’t a lot she can do.

“I can’t just go get her,” she said. “So that is not going to happen.”

The mother said she’s been concerned all along that something wasn’t right. Two weeks ago, she contacted the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office, who referred her to Maricopa Police. She wanted them to check in to see if her daughter was OK.

Although she didn’t, and still doesn’t, know the address where her daughter was staying, she said the MPD contact said he was familiar with the location and would go take a look. He called later to report that everything was fine, that nothing appeared out of order, she said.

“I just want to help my daughter,” she said. “I think she is in over her head. My wish for her is, if nothing more, for this to work out and to be a group; but I don’t think that was the intention. I feel like it has been false from the beginning.”

By late Friday, the concerned mother, although still worried, said that perhaps her daughter is simply making poor choices rather than being in any real danger. She is planning to hold off on making any police reports for the time being.

In part, perhaps, it’s because Goddard said she believes Laman is a poor manager with little experience and a lot more embellishments than facts on her resume. But she doesn’t believe Laman has anything to gain by spending $80,000 of her life savings to create and manage a pop group.

A long history of recruiting sponsors for projects that never materialize suggests otherwise, and might explain where the $80,000 came from. Laman’s trail includes reports of theft, unpaid bills, and explanations that change radically between audiences for the same scenarios and a resume filled with holes.

Turner said she was not familiar with details related to the Suite 16 Girls, but said anyone who has not been able to recover personal property from anyone should file a theft report by calling MPD Dispatch at 520-866-5111.

She did clarify, however, that being taken advantage of doesn’t necessarily make one a victim. When it comes to the missing car wash funds earmarked for Against Abuse, Inc., for example, only the charity to which the money was promised can be considered a victim.

While Against Abuse does have a record of receiving a $200 check on behalf of the Suite 16 Girls, it came from the Goddard Foundation. They have not reported receiving any of the funds raised Feb. 23 from donors whose cars the Suite 16 Girls washed.

The only way to determine how much money Against Abuse is owed would be for those who donated at the car wash to come forward and report what they gave, so the charity can file a claim for the missing funds.

“It is like giving a gift,” Turner said. Because you freely gave it up to those people, it doesn’t matter what happens to it.

For that reason, Turner said she advises against donating through third-party fundraisers.

“If they want to donate to charity, go straight to that charity and donate,” she said.

The exact dollar value of what Maricopa businesses and individuals pumped into supporting Suite 16 is not known, but totaled t least $5,000 within the group’s first five weeks in the area.

Turner also said any invested time or money in such a project, even if the contributor now believes that assistance was solicited under false pretenses, would not be recoverable unless there was a written agreement detailing what they were to receive in return, and proof that the agreement was breached.

Such would not necessarily be the case if the one being stiffed was a landlord.

“They have to look at the Landlord Tenant Act,” Turner said. “It is not a police matter. It’s a civil matter.”

Previous coverage:

Part One focused on the community’s reception of a group representing itself as the hottest, undiscovered all-girl band and questions surrounding the project.

Part Two focused on the people who comprise Suite 16, where they came from and why they are here.

Part Three focused on the less-than-squeaky-clean background of Suite 16.

Part Four focused on Suite 16’s potential impact on local individuals and businesses.

Suite 16 Girls to hold auditions Saturday at the Women’s Expo

Suite 16’s ‘Phoenix Rayne’ pulls out of salsa festival amidst apparent struggles

Opinion

Mother of former Suite 16 Girl speaks out

Former Suite 16 Girl ‘absolutely scared’ for remaining members

Photo by RuthAnn Hogue

For Broader Perspective

View the transcript of a Dateline NBC program that aired May 2 exposing a similar scenario: Reality Bites with Chris Hansen.