& # 39; Dine-and-Dash Dater & # 39; accused of new charges of extortion

LOS ANGELES –

A man from Pasadena, California, known as "Dine-and-Dash Dater", was charged on Friday with four new extortion charges, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office said.

Paul Guadalupe Gonzales, 45, was indicted, while one count of theft and one minor theft was dismissed. He pleaded not guilty to new charges at Friday's hearing.

Gonzales now faces 11 charges of extortion, two charges of attempted extortion, two counts of innkeeper fraud and one count of theft.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Tuesday and his release on bail remains at $ 315,000.

The criminal complaint alleges that between May 2016 and April 2018, Gonzales dined with women whom he met via dating apps, then left without paying any bills.

"Here, the defendant attended the restaurants with the intention of ordering expensive meals without paying them," according to a file filed by the Deputy Attorney, Michael Fern. "Rather than just dine and rush over the dime of the restaurant, he set up a third party to take the fall."

The court alleges that the bills – restaurants in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Burbank and Pasadena – ranged from about $ 81 to about $ 250.

Gonzales reportedly told his dates to go to the men's room or get a phone charger from his car, among other excuses, before leaving a restaurant without paying.

Eleven women would eventually pay the bills themselves, with one of them being convinced that the defendant was going to pay it back, according to the L.A. District Attorney 's Office.

In two cases, the restaurants would have recovered the check after Gonzales left his dates alone, said the prosecutor. These companies are among the victims cited in the criminal complaint.

In an unrelated incident, the defendant would also have received services from a hair salon and would have left without paying.

Gonzales faces a maximum sentence of 16 years and 10 months in prison if he is found guilty, according to the District Attorney's Office.

City News Service contributed to this report.