However, the man's other alleged crime - supposedly leaving either human or animal feces wrapped in a cloth napkin at one of the eateries - will go uninvestigated, because the restaurant will not press additional charges.
John Muia pleaded guilty in Weehawken Municipal Court Monday to charges that he ate at two different Weehawken restaurants - Houlihan's and Ruth's Chris Steak House - and left without paying the bill.
Police said Muia's mother told them he had battled drug addiction and depression.
Muia was sentenced by Municipal Judge Emil Del Baglivo to 90 days in the Hudson County Jail and fined $1,700 for his actions.
Bite by bite According to Weehawken Public Safety Director Jeff Welz, the bizarre tale actually begins on Aug. 31. That day, Welz said, Muia, who stands about 5-foot-10 and weighs in excess of 300 pounds, went to Ruth's Chris Steak House for dinner.
"He apparently sat down at Ruth's Chris and ordered two bottles of Dom Perignon [champagne] and some fresh strawberries," Welz said. "He told the waiter that he was planning a romantic dinner with his girlfriend and he wanted everything to be right. He instructed the waiter not to open the champagne until his girlfriend arrived, that the bottles should be left unopened on ice. When the waiter brought the strawberries, the man told him that they were not firm enough and sent them back."
When the waiter went back inside the kitchen to get more strawberries, Muia allegedly grabbed the two bottles of Dom Perignon, priced at $200 per bottle, and headed for the door. As he departed, he allegedly left a cloth napkin with some sort of fecal matter on it.
"As for the napkin, we didn't send it out to a criminal lab to do an analysis on it," Welz said. "The description from the waiter said that it was foul smelling and was more than likely feces. Whether it was dog or human could not be determined."
If Muia left human feces on that table, he could have been slapped with criminal decency charges. But the owners at Ruth's Chris did not want to press any further charges regarding the unwanted gift.
"They did call the police to say that some big guy left without paying for the two bottles of Dom Perignon, but only after a few days had passed," Welz said.
So how did the police catch him?
Second course Muia then allegedly struck again on Sept. 15, when he ate a meal at Houlihan's, which is located near Ruth's Chris in the UBS Financial Services center in Lincoln Harbor.
"He allegedly ate at Houlihan's, then didn't pay," Welz said. "But they immediately called the police." Weehawken Police Officer John DeCosmis happened to be on duty both days. DeCosmis was called to Ruth's Chris, and a waiter gave a complete description.
"The description given matched the description from Ruth's Chris," Welz said.
DeCosmis put a bulletin over the radio to be on the lookout for a large fellow who just left Houlihan's without paying his bill. Within minutes, Police Officer Agusto Same, who was on patrol, apprehended Muia.
"He was brought to Ruth's Chris to be identified, which he was," Welz said.
Welz said messages about Muia's arrest were sent out to neighboring police departments. Welz said that Muia is now a suspect in having pulled the prank before in Hoboken and Rutherford. Hoboken police are investigating whether Muia pulled a dine-and-dash routine in two local restaurants, including the Madison Bar and Grill.
Further charges There was also a warrant for Muia's arrest on theft charges that he allegedly took the wallet of a Union City police sergeant in a Hoboken health club.
And just 10 days before the latest Weehawken incident, Muia was arrested by Lyndhurst police after he allegedly tried to charge food and wine to a Rutherford hotel room that he was not occupying.
In 2001, Muia was arrested for fraud for allegedly trying to purchase an automobile in Union City by using a false name, Welz said.
"We don't know whether he's going to be charged in any of the other cases," Welz said. "But this was great police work by Officer DeCosmis, who made the correlation between the two incidents. Because of the man's size, he definitely stood out in a crowd and he was able to be apprehended."
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