Well, I've confused my audience with a split narrative. I began by suggesting that this was "theoretical", and then I suddenly segued into addressing this as a real situation involving a "friend" Sorry about that. I’ll clarify.

The points are real but the “friend” will remain nameless to protect the not-so-innocent.

This is definitely not a case of a misunderstood reservation or a paid no-show. The situation is very much like the one Flyerwife describes. Points were posted for a stay that could not have been made because the party was at another location entirely. What made it significant is that the stay was counted as #4 in the CNTU promo and earned 20,000 points. I guess I was hoping to hear that this kind of thing occurs all the time and that we all just keep the points. Or, that it kind of makes up for all the “points never posted” stories we read here - so my friend should go ahead and enjoy the perk.

Since this looks like an unusual occurrence, however, I believe my friend will come back from the dark side on this and let Hilton know about the mistake. He still has time for a fourth stay to earn the 20,000 points before the 90 days elapse.

Thanks for the input!