Queens Tribune

An Astoria landlord has been charged with stealing the identity of one of his tenants in order to obtain a $32,000 car loan and to open a credit card account that incurred more than $20,000 in debts, including bills for his telephone and EZ Pass.

Phivos C. Ioannou, 47, Astoria was arraigned Aug. 27 before Queens Criminal Court Judge William M. Harrington on a complaint charging him with one count of second-degree grand larceny and three counts of first-degree identity theft. Ioannou, who faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted, was released without bail and ordered to return to court on Sept. 30.

An investigation was commenced by detectives from the New York City Police Department’s 114th Precinct Detective Squad following a complaint from the victim, Jorgji Glekas, 48, after she received bills in the mail that did not correspond to any accounts that she was aware of having opened. Glekas also told police that Ioannou, her landlord, subsequently began asking her if she had received any mail that did not belong to her.

According to the complaint, Ioannou is accused of taking a $32,450 loan from Capitol One Auto Finance last year.

A Bank of America Visa credit card account was opened last May in the name of Jorgji Glekas. Records indicate that $20,310 in charges were made on the account, including more than $4,000 at Queenie Boutique in Astoria. Ioannou, according to the complaint, admitted he is the owner of the boutique.