Softball president enters not guilty plea
STAMFORD — Local Babe Ruth Girls Softball League President Charles Pia Sr. had a brief appearance at the Stamford courthouse on Thursday and made a not guilty plea to an allegation that he did not pay a local caterer thousands of dollars he owed for a league dinner.
Pia Sr., 62, a longtime member of the Republican Town Committee, appeared before Judge John Blawie with his criminal defense attorney Stephan Seeger and is scheduled to make another plea to a different larceny charge on May 17.
Pia Sr. is charged with two counts of fifth-degree larceny for stealing more than $1,500 from the nonprofit girls league, as well as a third-degree larceny charge for not paying for the food. Seeger said that he expected to make a not guilty plea on Pia Sr.’s behalf for the fifth-degree larceny charges at the next court date.
According to the police allegations, Pia Sr. approached an East Side grocery store to cater a league event in April 2015.
The store made a bid for the job, but Pia Sr. whittled the proprietor down by $2,000 and settled on a $4,000 charge, his arrest affidavit said.
Despite attempts to collect the debt, Pia Sr. refused, and payment was never made, police say. As a result he was arrested April 8 and released on a $25,000 courtappearance bond.
But Seeger says this case is best adjudicated in civil, not criminal court.
“We have done our own investigation. From the very first moments since I received any documents in this case, I have said this is a civil matter. More documents have come for me today,” Seeger said. “This is a misunderstanding about some over ordered food. Period.”
Seeger said the league banquet was supposed to be for 230 people, but the caterer delivered food for that plus 100 more. He said Pia Sr. called the caterer on the overcharge, but the bill was never settled, even though Pia Sr. offered to pay what he thought it was worth.
A little over a week before his April 8 arrest, Pia Sr. was charged with allegedly stealing more than $1,500 from the league to pay his natural gas and car wash bills. Pia Sr.’s arrest came after an 18-month investigation, which is ongoing, and police say they are “looking into other suspicious charges on the Girls Softball account, as well as attempting to identify where cash from raffles, concession stand sales, and other sources were deposited.”
After analyzing league accounts, an examiner with the Department of Consumer Protection identified $54,278 worth of “questionable charges” over a fiveyear time frame, his arrest affidavit said. Police said the money for the league was raised from raffles, concession stand sales and other charitable means.
“We will enter a not guilty plea to the first case on May 17 as well,” Seeger said.