Miami Police Pull Body From Biscayne Bay Behind Notorious Pandemic Party House

The Belle Meade Island home was infamous for wild parties amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

August 19, 2024

The infamous COVID party house of 2020 was a crime scene on August 18, 2024. WFOR-TV (CBS 4) screenshot

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On Sunday, August 18, the body of a man was discovered behind an infamous party house in Miami, known for its wild all-night parties during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.

Red-light camera mogul John Petrozza owns the sprawling waterfront property on a cul-de-sac at 7301 Belle Meade Island Dr. In March 2023, the Miami City Commission fined him $230,000 for operating the waterfront estate in the quiet residential enclave in Miami's Upper Eastside as an illegal short-term rental. The house had been listed as a "great party space" for as much as $50,000 per month or $3,500 a night.

Neighbors say parties persist at the estate to this day.

"Cops hauling ass to the party house on the island," one Belle Meade resident texted in a neighborhood chat a little after 5:30. "Five cars so far."

At 9 p.m., numerous cars remained in the semicircular drive and police vehicles and crime-scene tape blocked the cul-de-sac. A police officer at the scene told New Times the body wasn't connected to the people occupying the house.

As she drove away, a woman who declined to identify herself said police had questioned her and others at the house for several hours.

In the spring of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, neighbors complained to police and code enforcement officials about the unruly, illegal parties on the property.

A July 2020 New York Times report described partygoers arriving by the hundreds in sports cars and rideshares. Neighbors reported seeing professional bouncers at the door and complained they needed earplugs to mute the loud music. Airbnb removed the mansion from its website later that year under its party-house ban.

But the parties went on.

A Las Vegas-themed bash at the house in August 2021 included a Bengal tiger pacing in a cage in the backyard. The Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission confirmed it was a licensed exhibition.

The six-bedroom, 8,000-square-foot home offers waterfront and bay views, a tiki hut, a brick pizza oven, a pool with views of Biscayne Bay, and a "huge space for events and gathering."

Petrozza purchased the property for more than $6 million in 2018.

A Miami Police Department spokesperson tells New Times the homicide unit is still investigating the matter and no details have been released.

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Naomi Feinstein is a staff writer of Miami New Times where she primarily focuses on news. Naomi started her career with New Times as an intern from June–August 2019, then worked as a fellow from August 2022 to February 2023 before joining the staff full-time. She graduated from University of Miami where she contributed to the student-run newspaper, The Miami Hurricane. She holds a master’s degree and graduated with honors from the Columbia School of Journalism. In 2021, Naomi was recognized as the College Journalist of the Year from the Society of Professional Journalists of Florida, and she placed second for Best General News Story in the 2021 Pinnacle Awards.

Contact: Naomi Feinstein

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