Key Takeaways

  • The DEA searched a Liberty Township, Ohio home owned by an LLC that is simultaneously a defendant in a civil STR zoning lawsuit.
  • The same operator group controls more than 80 Butler County properties and faces potential court orders banning STR activity and imposing daily fines.
  • Operators defying formalized local STR bans risk escalating legal exposure — including civil nuisance declarations that could spread to their entire portfolio.

A DEA search in Ohio just dropped a federal-law-enforcement twist into an already messy short-term rental fight.

According to local ABC affiliate “WCPO,” DEA spokesperson Brian McNeal confirmed the agency teamed up with Cincinnati police for an operation at a home on Silver Skate Drive in Liberty Township.

And here’s where it gets extra interesting for STR owners — that same property is already tied up in a local zoning battle.

The home is owned by LRE 2 LLC, one of four defendants named in a May 6 civil lawsuit filed by Liberty Township over alleged repeated zoning violations connected to short-term rental activity.

In other words, this was not just another neighborhood STR complaint. This was allegedly a property already on local officials’ radar before federal agents showed up.

What the Liberty Township STR lawsuit means for operators

The same company also owns a second home on Granada Court that was the site of a large party and reported gunfire earlier this month, according to the report.

That shooting prompted a $5,000 reward from Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones. The lawsuit names LRE 2 LLC, LRE 1 LLC, Plum Tree Rentals LLC, and Jason Ross as defendants; per the Butler County Auditor’s Office, the group controls more than 80 properties across the county.

Related: Michigan municipalities push new STR bans and restrictions

“Bringing in people from the outside for one-night, two-night parties is not who Liberty Township is. We are a bedroom community and will do everything in our power to remain a bedroom community,” said Trustee Tom Farrell, according to Fox19.