Federal prosecutors charge SantaCon founder with siphoning over $1 million in donations for luxury trips, fine dining and property
The creator of the SantaCon Christmas season bar crawl is accused of misappropriating over a million dollars intended for charity and using it to fund his lavish lifestyle.
Stefan Pildes, 50, allegedly put the “con” in SantaCon by blowing the dough on luxury vacations to Hawaii, Colorado and Las Vegas, along with extravagant Michelin star meals and a high-end car, according to a federal indictment.
Pildes, who was arrested on wire fraud charges Wednesday, allegedly spent roughly $124,000 of the cash on leasing a luxury apartment in Manhattan and another $100,000 on a boutique resort in Costa Rica, according to the indictment, unsealed in the Southern District of New York court.
In total, SantaCon raised at least $2.7 million for charity through ticket sales for the boozy event between 2019 and 2024 — but he allegedly diverted more than half of that money “to a slush fund,” which Pildes also used to renovate a lakefront New Jersey property, prosecutors said.
The disgraced party promoter — known for throwing hula-hooping bashes and reportedly funneling big bucks to Burning Man festivities — allegedly also blew the would-be charity funds on renovations to a lakefront property in New Jersey and concert tickets, according to prosecutors.
He allegedly also blew the would-be charity funds on renovations to a lakefront property in New Jersey and concert tickets, according to prosecutors.
“Pildes promoted SantaCon as an event grounded in charitable giving, but instead of donating the millions of dollars he raised, he ran his own con game,” US Attorney Jay Clayton said in a press release.
Pildes, bottom center, during during SantaCon 2023.Getty Images
Pildes allegedly spent the stolen money on luxurious vacations and a lakefront property in New Jersey.Instagram/groovehoops
Pildes seen on a ski trip at the Swiss Alps this year.Instagram/groovehoops
Pildes spent some of the money meant for charity on concert tickets, according to proseuctors.Instagram/groovehoops
“He took advantage of New Yorkers’ generous holiday spirit to finance his lifestyle through personal expenses, big and small. No matter how you dress it up, fraud is fraud.”
Participants were told that proceeds from SantaCon would go to good causes such as “fighting hunger” and “arts funding”— with the event’s website stating that proceeds go “directly to Santa’s charity drive,” according to the indictment.
“Your money will be split between the various charities listed on this page as well as local charities along Santa’s route,” he wrote on the website.
But Pildes ultimately “defrauded tens of thousands of individuals and small business owners who participated in” SantaCon, according to prosecutors.
The founder of the Christmas season bar crawl SantaCon was arrested on Wednesday for wire fraud charges.James Keivom
Stefan Pildes (not pictured) allegedly stole hundreds of thousands of dollars earmarked for charity.James Keivom
Pildes (not pictured) allegedly put the “con” in SantaCon by blowing the dough on pricey vacations to Hawaii and Las Vegas, along with extravagant meals and a high-end car, according to a federal indictment.James Keivom
The raucous annual event — which is both loved and loathed by New Yorkers — generally draws about 25,000 people dressed as Santa and other Christmas characters to bars and restaurants around the Big Apple. Tickets cost between $10 and $20.
A big chunk of cash raised by the tax-exempt organization actually went to bankrolling Burning Man parties and to cryptocurrency, an investigation by Gothamist found in 2023.
The report revealed that SantaCon organizers had given less than a fifth of the $1.4 million it raised between 2014 and 2022 to registered charities.
Pildes, of Hewitt, New Jersey, was charged Wednesday with one count of wire fraud and faces up to 20 years in prison.
“The FBI continues to root out scrooges that greedily exploit the goodwill of New Yorkers,” James Barnacle, FBI Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office Barnacle, said in a statement.
Pildes pleaded not guilty in Manhattan court Wednesday and was released on a $300,000 bond.
“You may have no involvement directly or indirectly with the promotion or organization of the event called Santacon,” Manhattan federal Magistrate judge Katharine Parker ordered.
Pildes’ LinkedIn page declares that he “was a professor of video production at NYU and a primary pillar in the worldwide hula-hoop movement.”
He declined to comment Wednesday while leaving court. Reps from Santa Con didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
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