Virgo’s owner arrested
on Nevada warrant
Golden allegedly refused
payment on $33K check
at a Las Vegas casino
By craig yetsko

NORTH BRUNSWICK — The owner of a Route 130 go-go establishment has been at odds with township officials since the spring.

Now, Paul Golden is in trouble with the Nevada authorities.

According to Marlboro Police, Golden, the owner of Virgo’s, was arrested at Roughrider Steakhouse, a Marlboro restaurant he owns, on July 17 on a fugitive warrant for his arrest in Nevada.

Golden, who lives in Manalapan, was remanded to the Monmouth County Correctional Center, Freehold, in default of $50,000 bail with no 10 percent option. He was later released, according to a MCCC official.

Daniel Ahlstrom, chief deputy in charge of bad checks at the Clark County District Attorney’s Office, said Wednesday that Golden was at Caesar’s Casino, Las Vegas, last October when he wrote a $33,000 check and then stopped payment.

"We’re going to prosecute him (Golden)," he said.

Golden was unavailable for comment.

Ahlstrom said he did not know what Golden did with the money.

Once Golden refused payment on the check, it is presumed that he defrauded the casino, Ahlstrom said, and a complaint was then filed with the district attorney’s office.

Ahlstrom said the offense is a class D felony, with a maximum penalty of up to four years in jail.

He further noted that his office is "trying very desperately" to have Golden extradited back to Nevada, adding that it seems that Golden is fighting extradition.

Such cases are common in Nevada, Ahlstrom said.

He explained that about 70 deputy district attorneys go to court every day prosecuting people for the offense.

Township Attorney David Himelman said Monday that the crime is an indictable offense and could mean an automatic disqualification of a liquor license.

Golden was denied a liquor license for his go-go bar earlier this year and is appealing the Township Council’s decision.

Ahlstrom also said that the offense may jeopardize Golden’s attempt to receive a liquor license.

"I would hope that it does," he said. "It’s a privileged license."

This is just the latest news involving Golden.

After being denied a liquor license transfer in March, he appealed to the Office of Administrative Law, which is scheduled to hear arguments next Thursday from attorneys from the township and Virgo’s.

Later in the spring, township officials drafted an ordinance which banned public nudity.

Golden challenged the ordinance, claiming that it violated Virgo’s freedom of speech and expression.

Township officials stated that the ordinance was created to combat "secondary effects" of sexually oriented businesses including prostitution, crime and deterioration in property values.

State Superior Court Judge Robert Longhi ruled in favor of the township, saying that the law did not suppress "the erotic message conveyed by nude dancing."

The ordinance is the first of its kind in New Jersey and was modeled after an Erie, Pa., ordinance which was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court on March 29.

In June, Golden indicated that the township had filed 12 complaints against him and his business, which he said could "subject me to many years in jail."

One of the complaints said that Virgo’s violates a state statute which prohibits a sex-oriented business within 1,000 feet of a residential zone.

Police Director Donald Conry said that sexually explicit shows have been performed by dancers at the establishment, which is located near Deerbrook Village, a development within the 1,000-foot zone.