Stavros Papantoniadis, proprietor of Stash’s Pizza, will probably be held with out bail after allegedly abusing undocumented workers in what prosecutors referred to as a 15-year scheme, a federal decide dominated Tuesday night time.
“The body of work alone shows he’s a continued danger to his victims as well as the public at large,” argued Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Fogerty at a 4 hour bail listening to at Boston’s Federal Court on Monday. “The evidence, in the government’s opinion, overwhelmingly shows he should be detained.”
Papantoniadis, 47, was arrested final Thursday and is dealing with a single depend of compelled labor, however prosecutors dredged a nicely of alleged misconduct and disturbing conduct of their case to have the restaurateur held with out bail at Monday’s listening to — presumably forecasting extra fees to come back.
The compelled labor cost stems from an investigation into claims from seven victims, all of whom lacked authorized documentation to reside and work within the U.S.
One sufferer central to the case claimed Papantoniadis threatened to kill or get him deported to maintain him on the job working 85-115 hours per week for over a decade and repeatedly bodily assaulted him, at one level sending him to the hospital for a extreme groin harm, Homeland Security Special Agent John Michael Heaton testified Monday.
Prosecutors additionally laid out accusations and proof the defendant dedicated lots of of 1000’s of {dollars} value of fraud, together with a mortgage for a enterprise he not owned and unemployment claims whereas he was on trip in Aruba.
Investigators additionally discovered one video of kid porn and several other others depicting the looks of individuals in ache and non-consensual acts in Papantoniadis’s iCloud, Heaton testified graphically. The movies, Fogerty stated, have been “consistent with his interest in humiliation and degradation” and a “unique kind of violence.”
Other claims included an try and hinder the investigation by intimidating a witness, dropping tens of 1000’s in playing for the previous a number of years and mendacity to police a couple of hit-and-run in an try and get a former worker deported.
Papantoniadis beforehand confronted a Department of Labor case alleging he illegally withheld workers pay in 2017 and ultimately settled the swimsuit, paying out again wages and damages.
A small passionate crowd of the defendant’s household and buddies got here out to the bail listening to Monday morning, shifting the listening to into an even bigger courtroom. Stash’s Pizza supervisor Jerry Skordas testified to his boss’s character Monday, saying he “cares about Steve and his family tremendously.”
Defense legal professional Carmine Lepore introduced a spread of passionate protection of his purchasers — together with strategies victims had a “huge, huge incentive” to make claims to get visa help from Homeland Security — and requested his consumer be launched on bail with orders to keep away from victims and present workers.
“This case is going to be vigorously defended as you can tell from this hearing,” Lepore informed the decide.
Papantoniadis moved to personally tackle the court docket however shortly conceded when Magistrate Judge Judith Dein stated frankly she “would not recommend” he accomplish that.
Papantoniadis will probably be held with out bail till his trial, to be scheduled at a later date.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”