Downtown business owner pleads not guilty to allegations of sexual assault in his restaurant
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — A downtown San Diego business owner faced a judge Monday after he was arrested for alleged sexual assault.
Geoffrey Enrico Cole is accused of sexual assault at Chef’s SD, a business he had owned prior to its closing. The alleged instances date back to May 27, 2023, when police say two people were assaulted inside the restaurant’s lounge in the 500 block of F Street.
Police said on May 30, 2023, the victims reported the alleged assaults to police and during the investigation, the victims identified the alleged suspect as Cole.
On Monday he entered a plea of not guilty and denied all allegations.
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Cole was arrested on April 1, just one day after his new business, BAD (Brunch After Dark), opened in the Gaslamp, according to his social media account, where he also posted a statement saying that he didn’t know any details of the crimes he’s accused of.
Just a day before his arrest, he posted a photo of a ribbon cutting at his new business, alongside San Diego City Councilmember Stephen Whitburn.
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Where Chef’s SD was located on Fifth Street now sits a new restaurant, which has not yet opened. FOX 5/KUSI talked with the owner of the new business who said they have nothing to do with Cole.
“He is facing four counts. There’s two counts of felony sexual battery, one count of misdemeanor sexual battery and one count of indecent exposure. The max sentence of the current alleged complaint is six years,” San Diego County Deputy District Attorney Zachary Wallace said after Monday’s arraignment.
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He said a criminal protective order has also been filed, aiming to protect the two alleged female victims from any contact with Cole, as he is out on a $70,000 bail.
“We don’t take into consideration anything about someone’s profession or not, their notoriety in the community or not, that has nothing to do with our analysis. Our analysis is what happened here, what does the law say the crime is for this kind of conduct, what does the law say the punishment is. And we try to treat everyone as equal as possible,” Wallace said.
Police said at the time of his arrest they believe there may be more victims in the case. Anyone with information is asked to call SDPD Sex Crimes Unit at 619-531-2210. Callers can remain anonymous by contacting Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.
Cole is scheduled to be back in court in June.
Cole and his attorney denied an interview after Monday’s court proceeding.
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