LOS ANGELES (CNN/WFLA) – A smooth criminal in Los Angeles is being called the “Dine-and-Dash Dater” after leaving several women with restaurant bills.
One of the victims, who did not want to be identified, told CNN affiliate KCAL that she met Paul Gonzales on a dating app and went to dinner with him.
“He ordered a salad with shrimp, filet mignon – yeah, he went all out,” the woman said.
After dinner, the woman says Gonzales had two cups of coffee and said he was worried about his sick aunt.
“All of a sudden he’s all, ‘Oh my charger – my phone’s dying and I’m waiting on a call from my mom about my aunt,'” the woman said.
Gonzales told her he was going to get his charger from his car. But the woman says he never came back, and she was left paying a $130 bill.
“I didn’t bring it to the restaurant – nothing,” she said. “I think I was more embarrassed. My pride was just like – you know? I felt dumb.”
What the woman didn’t realize? She wasn’t alone.
According to KCAL, Gonzales is the same man who has “dashed” from dates with at least four other women, leaving them with the bill.
A Los Angeles attorney is advising all dine-and-dish victims to file a police report to document the crime.
“You can be jailed for up to six months or fined up to $1,000 if your dine-and-dash bill was under $950,” she said.
