The operator of St. Thomas Social and one of its owners have filed a $10 million lawsuit against Banco Popular de Puerto Rico and its parent company, alleging the bank’s actions led to the arrest of local business owner Brett “Mac” McClafferty late last month.
The complaint, filed Wednesday in Superior Court by Social Hospitality Group Inc., operator of St. Thomas Social, accuses Banco Popular and Popular Inc. of negligence, defamation, abuse of process, false arrest and intentional infliction of emotional distress. The lawsuit claims the bank wrongly reported fraudulent banking activity connected to checks deposited into the company’s account, which ultimately led to felony charges against McClafferty.
According to the filing, the dispute traces back to late 2023 after Social Hospitality Group opened business accounts at Banco Popular. Around that time, the company says an associate of the business, Dino Toscani, connected the restaurant with a man identified in the lawsuit only as “Pemberton,” who was seeking to host a multiday “medical symposium” at St. Thomas Social. A $40,000 check tied to the proposed event was deposited by the restaurant’s former general manager and initially accepted by the bank before later being returned.
The complaint alleges that when the check was returned, a bank officer contacted McClafferty but did not say the check was fraudulent. Instead, the lawsuit states that the bank advised the business to obtain a replacement check from Pemberton. According to the filing, Toscani — who the complaint describes as communicating with Pemberton on behalf of the restaurant — later obtained another check from the same source, which was deposited and also returned. The bank eventually advised the business to stop accepting checks from Pemberton and seek another form of payment, the complaint states. The event never took place after Pemberton died unexpectedly on St. Croix.
A first name is not provided in the suit for the individual identified as “Pemberton.” Public records show that St. Croix radio broadcaster Hugh Pemberton died in 2024, around the same time the events described in the lawsuit took place.
The lawsuit alleges that months later, the bank accused the plaintiffs of knowingly depositing fraudulent checks and reported the matter to police, claiming losses of more than $80,000. The complaint contends that the bank continued maintaining the company’s accounts for months after the transactions before filing the report that led to the criminal case.
Those allegations eventually resulted in felony charges against McClafferty. As previously reported by the Virgin Islands Source, he was arrested Feb. 21 after officers executed a warrant at his residence. Prosecutors charged him with grand larceny, passing or possessing forged bills, obtaining money by false pretenses, making and passing fictitious bills and delivering worthless checks. The charges remain pending following his advice of rights hearing and bail determination in Superior Court.
The civil complaint describes the arrest as a “no-knock” entry carried out early in the morning, alleging that officers forced entry into the residence, detained McClafferty and his girlfriend, Dominique Carty, and conducted a search before taking him into custody. The filing states that McClafferty remained handcuffed for several hours and was transported to Schneider Regional Medical Center before being processed.
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs argue the bank failed to properly investigate the deposits, maintain accurate records of who made the transactions, or follow internal safeguards before reporting alleged fraud to police. The complaint also alleges that the bank’s handling of the matter wrongly tied the deposits to McClafferty, even though employees or other associates routinely made deposits on behalf of the business.
In addition to claims of negligence and false arrest, the lawsuit includes allegations that the bank’s actions damaged the reputation and business prospects of Social Hospitality Group, which operates St. Thomas Social. The filing claims the arrest and prosecution disrupted business operations and contributed to lost opportunities, including planned expansion efforts and private event bookings.
The complaint also contains allegations regarding communications surrounding the criminal investigation. The filing references what it describes as a relationship between the plaintiffs and Gov. Albert Bryan Jr., and claims the charges were pursued in part to embarrass the governor.
The complaint further alleges that a former female Virgin Islands senator, a female member of the VIPD Economic Crimes Unit, and a bank officer communicated via WhatsApp in connection with the investigation and the sealed arrest warrant. According to the filing, those communications occurred outside normal law enforcement channels; however, those allegations have not been tested in court.
The lawsuit seeks at least $10 million in damages, along with compensatory and punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and other costs. In a statement accompanying the filing, representatives of Social Hospitality Group said the action was intended to address what they described as improper banking practices and to prevent similar situations affecting other Virgin Islands businesses.
The press release accompanying the lawsuit also noted that McClafferty has recused himself from the day-to-day operations of Social Hospitality Group and its properties while the related legal matters remain pending.
Banco Popular had not publicly responded to the lawsuit as of Wednesday. Meanwhile, the criminal charges against McClafferty remain pending in Superior Court.
