Fines issued in illegal restaurant case
Owner and tenant appear in Freehold court
BY CLARE MARIE CELANO
Staff Writer

Wall Township Police Officer Douglas Borst pleaded guilty to code violations and left the Freehold Borough municipal court on Oct. 24 with fines totaling $1,500.

Borst was cited for residential overcrowding and fined $1,250 on the home he owns at 58 Mechanic St., Freehold Borough, according to municipal court records. He was also cited for having a person sleeping in the basement, a code violation that cost him $250.

In addition, it was determined that the home on Mechanic Street was being used as a retail food establishment and/or a community residential bed-and-breakfast retail food establishment without the approval of the Freehold Board of Health.

Borst's tenant, Petra Hernandes, was also cited with residential overcrowding and fined $1,200. She was also fined $250 for having a person sleeping in the basement. Hernandes was also fined $100 for violating Board of Health regulations.

The code enforcement report stated that operating the "restaurant" was done in violation of regulations concerning food and beverage preparation.

A notice from the health department concerning the violations was sent to Borst and Hernandes on Aug. 30, informing them of the result of a code enforcement inspection conducted on Aug. 18 when the "restaurant" was discovered.

Inspection of the home included a dining room/living room with a number of tables and two mini-refrigerators, one stocked with alcohol and one stocked with soda.

At the time of the inspection there were about 10 people eating diner at the tables, according to the code enforcement report.

The home's basement was stocked with gallons of oil, large packages of salt, cases of beer and paper products. The report stated that the basement was being used for sleeping purposes.

According to Jeffrey Pallatini, the principal registered environmental health specialist with the Freehold Area Health Department, the health department was called on Sept. 7 by someone reporting that the restaurant was operating again. A second summons was issued to Hernandes, received by her sister, on Sept. 15.

Freehold Borough code enforcement official Hank Stryker III said the illegal restaurant was discovered after someone called the code enforcement office with an anonymous tip.

Borough Administrator Joseph Bellina said, "Our code enforcement office did a fastidious job of following through on this case just like they do on every other case where there is any potential violation of our codes. They (code enforcement officials) doggedly pursue anyone who violates or who attempts to violate Freehold Borough's quality of life."

Councilman Marc Le Vine was quoted in an earlier News Transcript story about the illegal restaurant saying that the idea of running an illegal restaurant in a home was "abysmal and unacceptable behavior on the part of the tenant."

When asked for a comment on the court decision regarding Borst's case, Le Vine said, "Justice has been served. The system works. Many people around town will be pleased at this decision. When word gets out to other absentee landlords, they will realize the town will be persistent in prosecuting people who do not live up to their end of the bargain."

Capt. Bernard Sullivan of the Wall Township Police Department returned a call from the News Transcript on Monday and said, "We are looking into the circumstances and occurrences in Freehold Borough and how they would relate to the officers in the department."

Freehold Borough officials told the News Transcript in a previous article regarding absentee landlords that several Wall Township police officers own rental properties in the borough.