Courts. (Credit: Flickr Creative Commons)
Thomas Frank DeNardo, of the 50th block of Walnut Avenue, Bellmawr, NJ, is free on bail and awaits sentencing in Montgomery County court
A manager of a Lower Frederick Township Italian restaurant pleaded guilty last month to felony statutory sexual assault, resulting in Montgomery County prosecutors dismissing 60 felonies and 11 misdemeanors.
Thomas Frank DeNardo, 49, of the 50th block of Walnut Avenue, Bellmawr, NJ, awaits sentencing by Common Pleas Judge Wendy Rothstein for the crimes that occurred over four years while employed at Bella Cucina Restaurant at 1461 N. Gravel Pike, per court documents.
DeNardo faces up to 20 years in prison and registering as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
He was initially charged with 10 felony counts each of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse on a person under 16, unlawful contact with a minor, statutory sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault on a victim under 16, aggravated indecent assault without consent, and sexual assault, and one felony count of endangering the welfare of a child. All but one statutory sexual assault charge were dismissed by Assistant District Attorney Bradley Deckel.
Additionally, 10 misdemeanor counts of indecent assault on a person under 16 and one misdemeanor corruption of minors charge were dismissed by prosecutors.
DeNardo has been free on $10,000 bond since Aug. 29, 2024. Sentencing is scheduled for June 26 at 3 p.m. He is represented by Media defense attorney Danton Lee Moyer.
According to court information, DeNardo posted a $10,000 cash bond on Aug. 29.
The crime occurred at Route 29 restaurant between January 2008 and December 2012.
On April 24, 2024, a 31-year-old female reported to police that she was sexually assaulted multiple times in 2008, while employed at the restaurant, at the age of 14, according to the affidavit.
During a May 6 interview with detectives, the victim told police she got the job at the restaurant and pizza shop at the age of 14. At the time, DeNardo , who was in his 30s, was her boss and manager of the restaurant, police said.
One day, in 2008, DeNardo approached the then juvenile female and gave her an order ticket. Printed on it was this:
Who: You.
What: Anything we want to do.
Where: Anywhere.
When: Anytime.
How: However, we want.
DeNardo then assaulted the victim in the upstairs storage area of the restaurant and at his Boyertown area home in Berks County.
When the victim turned 18, police said she messaged DeNardo’s wife at 9:20 p.m. Feb. 1, 2011, telling her about the encounters and what he was doing to her.
Initially, DeNardo’s wife did not believe the victim, but was convinced when the victim described the DeNardo family’s interior home in detail, including that he owns a cat that he hates because he is allergic, police said.
Authorities said DeNardo provided details about his troubled marriage and pending divorce. There was a significant power imbalance, as he was her boss and in charge of her paycheck, per the complaint.
Authorities said the victim called DeNardo on May 23, 2024, and asked for an apology, after telling him they did not have a relationship, and she was 14 years old. Per the affidavit, DeNardo apologized, said it was foolish and wrong, but things got crazy.
On May 29, police interviewed the victim’s mother, who said she found an explicit image of her daughter in her daughter’s emails, police said. The email was sent to a man she worked with at Bella Cucina, per the complaint. The victim’s mom implored her to quit her job, which she did, police said.
On May 30, police interviewed a former co-worker, who was 15 in 2008, and revealed DeNardo was allegedly sexually suggestive to her and the victim while working. The co-worker described his actions as “grooming,” police said.
On June 11, detectives interviewed DeNardo at the Bellmawr New Jersey Police Department where he denied any physical or sexual relationships.
DeNardo said he never read any Facebook messages sent to his ex-wife that called him a pedophile and detailed the inappropriate relationship, police said.
Once he was shown the messages, he changed his tune.
“It is all there in black and white,” DeNardo told police.
A former employee at the restaurant told authorities that DeNardo, a pizza maker, had numerous infidelities and flirted with staff and customers, according to the affidavit.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
