reBar Owner Formally Charged With Grand Larceny And Tax Evasion
It’s been a week since news broke that DUMBO’s reBar, a popular destination for soon-to-be-wedded couples, had abruptly closed, leaving dozens of employees unpaid and hundreds of couples out of thousands of dollars in rental payments.
Until yesterday, nobody knew where to find the bar’s owner, Jason Stevens, and rumors quickly began flying that Stevens had gone on the lam with $150,000 in wedding deposit checks and $27,000 in cash. Now, we hear Stevens has finally turned up–in a Brooklyn courtroom.
According to Gothamist, Stevens was spotted at an arraignment on Thursday and has officially been charged with one count of grand larceny and four counts of tax evasion following a probe by the Brooklyn D.A.’s office.
The tipster who broke the news told Gothamist that after being charged with the felonies, Stevens was still able to make his $30,000 bail.
More specifically, Stevens has been charged with grand larceny in the second degree, which under New York law, carries a sentence of up to 15 years in jail. He’s also been charged with tax evasion in the second degree for withholding more than $1 million dollars in taxes. If found guilty, Stevens will face up to another 15 years in prison.
This won’t bring back the money allegedly stolen by Stevens, though affected couples are reportedly organizing for a possible class action suit, but we’re sure at least a few people involved will sleep a little better tonight. We’ll update this post as more information becomes available.
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