East El Paso’s Dirty Laundry bar permanently shuts down following legal troubles

EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14/CBS4) — An East El Paso bar accused of repeated criminal activity permanently shut its doors on Monday, citing a loss of revenue, according to the bar’s owner.

Dirty Laundry bar, located at 3136 Trawood Dr., has been at the center of legal troubles over the past few years following more than 280 emergency calls to the property over the last two years involving reports of drug trafficking, violent assaults and a deadly hit-and-run, officials said.

In a statement to KFOX14/CBS4, Dirty Laundry’s owner, Victor Fernandez, said he has decided to permanently shut down the bar, effective immediately, citing a loss of revenue following the bar’s legal troubles.

“After careful consideration, I’ve made the difficult decision to permanently shut down Dirty Laundry. Our revenue collapsed from about $150,000 down to less than $10,000. The same damaged image made it nearly impossible to hire good, credible people. When you lose both your customers and the ability to staff the place the right way, there’s nothing left to save, Fernandez said.

The closure comes after the bar briefly reopened in mid-May following Judge Bonnie Rangel of the 171st District Court’s May 4 grant of a temporary injunction against the bar.

The injunction was secured by El Paso County Attorney Christina Sanchez, whose office argued that the establishment qualified as a “common nuisance” — a legal designation for properties where criminal activity frequently occurs, and management fails to address it.

Under the court’s order, the bar’s owners had to comply with a list of conditions before reopening.

Among the conditions are:

Hiring security personnel authorized to carry guns.Installing metal detectors and surveillance cameras.Enforcing ID checks for every customer before they can buy drinks.Banning gang-related signs or clothing.Holding monthly meetings with the police.Updating employee records.Encouraging safe ride options for drunk patrons.Reporting illegal activity to authorities immediately.

Before reopening, the court also required the business to post a $7,500 bond.

RELATED: East El Paso’s Dirty Laundry bar reopens after legal troubles

The bar was originally shuttered in March after authorities linked the business to hundreds of police calls, allegations of drug sales and repeated violence, including a fatal crash investigators say may have involved a patron who had been drinking there.

Sanchez had obtained a temporary restraining order shutting down the bar, described by authorities as a “common nuisance.”

Under Texas law, a “common nuisance” is a place where people habitually go to commit crimes and where management knowingly tolerates the activity or fails to make reasonable efforts to stop it.

The County Attorney’s Office filed the lawsuit against the bar’s owners and operators, naming 3136 Trawood LLC, Ortequi Ltd Texas Limited Partnership, Pro West Industries, Corp., Victor Fernandez, Jose Luis Ortega, and Blanca E. Ortega.

The lawsuit came after an investigation involving the El Paso Police Department Upper East Regional Command, the EPPD DWI Taskforce, the Texas Anti-Gang Center and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission found what authorities described as a pattern of habitual criminal activity. Undercover agents reported that bar employees facilitated cocaine sales on multiple occasions.

Between February 2024 and March 2026, police generated 79 separate case reports tied to activity at the bar, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, terroristic threats and public intoxication, according to the lawsuit.

“Public safety is non-negotiable,” Sanchez previously said in a statement. “When a business knowingly permits violence and illegal drug activity, it endangers the families who live and work in the surrounding community. No establishment is entitled to operate in a manner that compromises the well-being of our residents.

Fernandez said he “tried working with the County” following the bar’s legal troubles, stating:

“Dirty Laundry was originally illegally closed using an ex parte Temporary Restraining Order. In plain terms, I was never given a real chance to stand up and defend against the inaccurate data that was put forward. I genuinely tried to understand why they would take such extreme action against a location that was only averaging two cases per month. We’ve always put security and public safety first. When clear numbers exist that show how many cases are actually tied to a specific place, it should be simple to go after the real problems — not the business that was already operating with almost no incidents. The numbers don’t lie. The way those numbers get presented, and the story that gets told around them, can do real and lasting damage that the data itself never justified. The average number of cases and calls to this location stayed consistent with what it had been long before the County stepped in. What changed was the perception. And that perception destroyed everything we had built.”

He added that while the bar is permanently closed, he will look into legal options, stating, “I’m now looking at every legal option available to address the severe economic and reputational harm this process caused. I will continue fighting to protect the rights of the people who worked here and the investment we made in good faith.”

KFOX14/CBS4 has reached out to the El Paso County Attorney’s office for comment.

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