Tinder Romeo Such A Bad Date, It's A Crime, Police Say

PASADENA, CA — To police he was known as the "dine-and-dash dater," but there are whole slew of women across the LA region who just know him as the worst date ever.

Paul Guadalupe Gonzales, a 45-year-old man accused of taking advantage of women he met on dating sites by wining and dining them only to ditch them when the bill arrived, pleaded not guilty Monday to extortion, grand theft and related charges.

According to police and prosecutors, Gonzales spent years leaving a trail of devastated online daters and angry restauranteurs in his wake before detectives finally caught up with him this year.

Now Gonzales faces seven counts of extortion, two counts of attempted extortion and one count of grand theft – all felonies – as well as two misdemeanor counts each of defrauding an innkeeper and petty theft.

Investigators say Gonzales had his routine down pat and that from May 2016 through April of this year, he would meet women through online dating sites and take them out for nice meals in Pasadena, Long Beach, Burbank and Los Angeles.

"He was good looking, and I thought right away, 'Why did he choose me?' " one unnamed victim told CBS2.

Everything would seem to be fine until after the food was eaten and the cocktails drank. Suddenly, Gonzales would feign the need to go to the restroom or retrieve his phone charger from a car, among other excuses. And that would be the last his dates ever saw of him. They were left footing his portion of the bill, or the restaurant got stiffed, investigators say.

Eight women ended up paying the bills themselves, one in the belief that the defendant was going to pay her back. In two other instances, the restaurants picked up the check after Gonzales alleged left without paying anything, according to Deputy District Attorney Michael Fern of the Cyber Crime Division.

According to the criminal complaint, Gonzales defrauded eight victims out of more than $950. But women looking to meet a nice guy weren’t the only ones Gonzales took advantage of, according to police. He also allegedly received services from a hair salon and left without paying.

Gonzales was ordered back to court Sept. 7 for a preliminary hearing to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed to trial. If convicted as charged, he faces a maximum penalty of 13 years in prison. The case remains under investigation by the Pasadena Police Department.

City News Service contributed to this report; Photo: Shutterstock / Nadya Lukic