MINEOLA, N.Y. — The owners of Anatolia Mediterranean & Grill in West Hempstead have been charged with underpaying their employees by more than $60,000 over a seven-month period, marking the first prosecution under Nassau County’s amended 2023 Grand Larceny statute for wage theft, officials announced.

Mahmut “Max” Unver, 43, and John “Canturk” Yilmaz, 50, were arraigned this month on charges including grand larceny in the second degree, scheme to defraud, and failure to pay wages, according to Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly. Both pleaded not guilty and face up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

Prosecutors allege that between September 2023 and April 2024, Unver and Yilmaz underpaid nine employees at their restaurant, with individual wage shortfalls ranging from $1,696 to more than $11,000. Additionally, they are accused of failing to pay nearly $14,000 in unemployment insurance contributions to the state since September 2022.

“My office does not tolerate the exploitation of hard-working employees,” DA Donnelly said. “By allegedly underpaying their workers by more than $60,000, the defendants violated the law and undermined the dignity and value of those who helped build their business.”

The charges leverage a strengthened New York State law that redefines wage theft as larceny, allowing prosecutors to consolidate underpayments to an entire workforce into a single grand larceny charge. Officials say this case underscores a renewed focus on holding employers accountable for wage theft under the amended statute.

Unver and Red Lions Food Corp., which owns Anatolia Mediterranean & Grill, are due back in court on January 6, 2025, while Yilmaz is scheduled to return on December 13, 2024.

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