Patrick Mendoza, the North End restaurant owner wanted in last week's shooting at another person that left a bullet hole in the front of a popular pastry shop, was arrested, Boston police said Friday.
He appeared in court Friday and was held without bail. Not guilty pleas were entered on his behalf on charges of assault to murder, assault with a dangerous weapon, weapons violations and intimidating a witness.
Mendoza has been wanted since last Thursday, when police say he tried shooting a man he's had a feud with for years. The incident, caught on video, happened outside of Modern Pastry on Hanover Street, and left a bullet hole in Modern's glass storefront.
Mendoza is owner of Monica's Trattoria in Boston's North End, which has its liquor license on the line due to the ongoing criminal investigation. The restaurant had a deadline of Friday to move the license into another person's name.
New details were revealed in court Friday — a Suffolk County prosecutor said Mendoza was on his bicycle when he saw the man he'd been feuding with and "fired multiple shots at this individual, stating, 'It's gonna be quick, I'm gonna kill you.'"
Mendoza biked away while the man he shot at, who wasn't hurt, went to tell police what happened.
The prosecutor said his office had "grave concerns for the safety of the community" in the case, asking that Mendoza not be released on bail. The restaurateur was also wanted for violating his bail — the day of the shooting was his last day on probation in the assault case involving the person he allegedly shot at — and the probation department also asked that he be held without bail.
The judge agreed. Mendoza is due back in court Wednesday.
Mendoza's arrest by a Boston police fugitive team was announced earlier Friday.
What will happen to the liquor license for Monica's?
Monica's has been in business for more than 20 years and now it's trying to replace its troubled owner and manager in order to retain its liquor license.
The Boston Licensing Board met on Thursday with the restaurant's lawyer to discuss the issue.
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One of the rules of the licensing board is for the current license holder and manager to be present during the hearings, otherwise the license can be revoked. Monica's Trattoria, through its lawyers, is now requesting the board grant a transfer of license to assistant manager Amanda McQueen.
However, the board has taken issue with the fact that Mendoza, who appointed McQueen to her current position, may be making business decisions while evading police.
"I’m grappling with whether or not I’m comfortable with the restaurant remaining open in the absence of an approved manager of record," licensing board chair Kathleen Joyce said.
The restaurant will now have to provide more information on McQueen's qualifications by the end of the day on Friday, while it tries to finish filing an application for the liquor license change.
“What has been a successful family business should not be penalized at this point by putting people out of work and having his family go without income," William Ferullo said, who is an attorney for Monica's Trattoria.
