Stash’s Pizza owner held without bail
Stavros Papantoniadis, owner of Stash’s Pizza, will be held without bail after allegedly abusing undocumented employees in what prosecutors called a 15-year scheme, a federal judge ruled.
“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 fourhour bail hearing at Boston’s Federal Court this week. “The evidence, in the government’s opinion, overwhelmingly shows he should be detained.”
Papantoniadis, 47, was arrested last Thursday and is facing a single count of forced labor, but prosecutors dredged a well of alleged misconduct and disturbing behavior in their case to have the restaurateur held without bail at Monday’s hearing — possibly forecasting more charges to come.
The forced labor charge stems from an investigation into claims from seven victims, all of whom lacked legal documentation to reside and work in the U.S.
One victim central to the case claimed Papantoniadis threatened to kill or get him deported to keep him at the job working 85115 hours a week for over a decade and repeatedly physically assaulted him, at one point sending him to the hospital for a severe groin injury, Homeland Security Special Agent John Michael Heaton testified Monday.
Prosecutors also laid out accusations and evidence the defendant committed hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of fraud, including a loan for a business he no longer owned and unemployment claims while he was on vacation in Aruba.
Investigators also found one video of child porn and several others depicting the appearance of people in pain and non-consensual acts in Papantoniadis’s iCloud, Heaton testified graphically. The videos, Fogerty said, were “consistent with his interest in humiliation and degradation” and a “unique kind of violence.”
Other claims included an attempt to obstruct the investigation by intimidating a witness, losing tens of thousands in gambling for the past several years and lying to police about a hit-and-run in an attempt to get a former employee deported.
Papantoniadis previously faced a Department of Labor case alleging he illegally withheld employees pay in 2017 and eventually settled the suit, paying out back wages and damages.
A small passionate crowd of the defendant’s family and friends came out to the bail hearing Monday morning, moving the hearing into a bigger courtroom. Stash’s Pizza manager Jerry Skordas testified to his boss’s character Monday, saying he “cares about Steve and his family tremendously.”
Defense attorney Carmine Lepore presented a range of passionate defense of his clients — including suggestions victims had a “huge, huge incentive” to make claims to get visa assistance from Homeland Security — and requested his client be released on bail with orders to stay away from victims and current employees.
“This case is going to be vigorously defended as you can tell from this hearing,” Lepore told the judge.
Papantoniadis moved to personally address the court but quickly conceded when Magistrate Judge Judith
Dein said frankly she “would not recommend” he do so.
Papantoniadis will be held without bail until his trial, to be scheduled at a later date.