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Boardman restaurant owner sentenced to 2 years’ probation
The businessman has been ordered to pay restitution.
YOUNGSTOWN — The owner of the Youngstown Sports Grille in Boardman will spend the next two years on probation after pleading guilty to five counts of workers’ compensation fraud.
Sean C. Pregibon, 36, of Brandt Place, Boardman, appeared for sentencing Monday before Judge R. Scott Krichbaum of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court. Pregibon pleaded guilty to the misdemeanor charges in October after reaching an agreement with prosecutors.
Jonathan L. Metzler, senior assistant Ohio attorney general who prosecuted the case, recommended a probation sentence for Pregibon in exchange for his guilty plea. He also asked the court to order Pregibon to continue monthly restitution payments of $1,000 a month while keeping up with his current workers’ compensation payments.
Judge Krichbaum sentenced Pregibon to two years’ probation and ordered that he make more than $30,000 in back payments in workers’ compensation at the already established rate of $1,000 a month.
He then gave Pregibon a stern warning. “My normal rule is that restitution be paid up front because this court is not a collection agency,” the judge said. “I am not someone who will understand if these payments are not made. ... I will have no choice but to put you in jail.”
An indictment filed against Pregibon said that from March 1, 2007, to Feb. 28, 2009, Pregibon failed to secure workers’ compensation coverage with the purpose to defraud the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. The indictment said the unpaid assessments were between $5,000 and $100,000 but did not give a specific figure.
Atty. J. Gerald Ingram, representing Pregibon, reminded the court his client supports his wife and two children, and also employs about 40 people in his business. He said decisions concerning the lives of those employees led to Pregibon’s legal troubles.
“Unfortunately, he was faced with a choice and made the wrong decision. He had to either not make the premiums or make cuts and lay people off,” Ingram said.
Pregibon told the judge he has had a difficult time making necessary payments and keeping up with payroll with the condition of the economy in the last 18 months in the restaurant business. He said he and his wife have decided to “weather the storm” and remain open through 2010.
Pregibon also apologized to his friends, family and the public and said the situation would not be repeated.
jgoodwin@vindy.com