Damrawi said his store, which sells women’s clothing, lingerie, wigs and sex toys, has been frequently targeted by vandals who’ve robbed him, assaulted him and thrown acid on his front window. He did not supply police case numbers to corroborate the incidents.
However, since he received the medical transportation bill earlier this month, Damrawi said he’s refused to report illegal behavior to authorities—afraid he may incur more fines.
“It’s like I’m living in prison,” Damrawi said.
In a statement, the San Francisco Fire Department acknowledged it incorrectly billed Damrawi’s business. Department spokesperson Justin Schorr said an unnamed person who was transported for medical treatment from the incident falsely marked Damrawi’s business as their home.
“We encourage anyone who believes they are witnessing a fire or medical emergency to call 911 immediately,” Schorr said in an email. “This issue should be resolved as soon as the billing company is notified of our direction.”
Schorr said this likely isn’t an isolated incident, as homeless victims sometimes report random addresses as their own. The department’s software is also known to log the location of an incident as a person’s home, he said.
Damrawi said he’s grateful the fee will be waived, but conditions around his business remain difficult.
