BORDERLAND
IHOP franchisee trial delayed by 5 weeks
3/14/2014The trial for local International House of Pancakes franchisee Tarek Elkafrawi and three co-defendants has been postponed until June 23.
U.S. District Court Judge David Katz delayed by five weeks the May 19 trial of Mr. Elkafrawi, 56, and his wife, Kelly Elkafrawi, 50, both of Middleton Township; Autumn Lee Tangas, 56, of Sylvania, and Tarek Eid Omar, 38, of Newburgh, Ind., at the request of Mr. Elkafrawi’s attorney, Rick Kerger, who said he had a scheduling conflict.
In 2011, federal agents raided six area IHOP restaurants and one in Indiana that Mr. Elkafrawi operated. The following May, Mr. Elkafrawi and 17 others were indicted on charges that included money laundering, alien harboring, mail fraud, health-care fraud, and identity theft. Fourteen of the individuals charged have pleaded guilty in federal court.