Host Hotels & Resorts Inc., one of the largest hotel owners in the United States, stunned the real estate industry last month with an announcement that it was suing its longtime broker, Molinaro Koger Inc.

Host accused the Vienna, Va.-based Molinaro Koger of orchestrating a complex hotel-flipping scheme that cost it millions and claimed the broker “repeatedly abused” its trust. Molinaro Koger President Robert Koger responded in a written statement saying he was “puzzled and disappointed” by the “baseless accusations.”