Criniti's founder in court accused of assaulting relatives
The collapse of the Criniti's Italian restaurant empire is putting strains on the family with founder Frank Criniti the subject of five apprehended violence order applications by police to protect relatives.
Criniti has already pleaded guilty to assaulting his former wife Rima and been accused of breaching the interim AVO protecting the wife of his younger brother Dominic.
Facing Parramatta Local Court, Criniti’s lawyer said his client's alleged criminal behaviour was tied to the collapse of the restaurant empire, saying he had committed “a number of offences in a short period of time”.
There were 13 restaurants in the chain when it went into administration in November last year when five of its restaurants were closed and staff sacked without notice.
Since then restaurants in two states have closed and new investors are being sought to take over what is left of the chain.
Administrator Graeme Beattie has said there is still “some magic in the Criniti's name”, and he is confident a buyer can be found for the remaining restaurants.
“The level of brand recognition and affinity is extraordinary for a small business of this size and we're confident that shrewd investors will want to take the name forward,” he said.
Sheridan Randall, 25th February 2020
