A former pizzeria manager was sentenced Wednesday to four years in prison for his guilty pleas to two felony sex charges involving a minor and seven misdemeanor charges of voyeurism.
Paul M. Strebler, 34, who managed Romeo’s Pizza on Ravenna Road in Twinsburg and was district manager at several other shops, pleaded guilty in September to setting up a hidden camera in the restaurant restroom and recording female employees, two of whom were younger than 18 at the time.
The Summit County criminal case file contained the names of 10 victims related to specific charges in Strebler’s indictment, which came down in June, along with three more victims who were found by prosecutors without any charges being filed.
Two mothers of the young victims addressed the court, both saying their daughters are emotionally scarred by what happened and find it hard to develop trust, not only for those in authority but also in times that they find themselves in need of using a public restroom.
The first mother, fighting back tears, said her daughter worked for Strebler for more than three years and “had gone above and beyond” to help him whenever needed, once regarding him as a friend, a responsible manager “and someone she looked up to.”
“She didn’t feel any different than if she had been raped,” the mother said, “except that she never got to say no.”
The second mother, reading a statement written by her daughter, said that the experience destroyed her senior year in high school and freshman year at Kent State University.
She said that her daughter still has nightmares about Strebler, has had panic attacks and has been undergoing therapy for anxiety.
The names of the young women and their mothers are not being used in accordance with the Beacon Journal’s policy involving victims of sexual crimes.
Strebler, who was seated at the defense table as the two women spoke, stood when their statements ended, turned toward the victims’ family members in the gallery and delivered what the judge called “a genuinely remorseful apology.”
He also apologized to his family members; the community where he worked; his former employers, saying they had nothing to do with his actions; and his wife, Tracy.
Summit Assistant Prosecutor Joe Dangelo asked for a sentence of six years for the two second-degree felony charges, telling the court that even the citizens of Twinsburg were violated because parents often sent their kids to work their first jobs at the Ravenna Road pizza shop.
Strebler’s mother also addressed the court, reading a lengthy statement in which she said she felt that her son’s actions were attributable to a “bipolar disorder” that was diagnosed after he was sent to the county jail following his arrest.
She said that she felt that her son was “a victim” in the case as well, telling the judge “he didn’t ask to be bipolar.”
The mother of the Kent State student, who was seated next to her daughter in the gallery as Strebler’s mother made that remark, shook her head, got up in obvious dismay and left the courtroom for several minutes to compose herself.
Asked to comment after the hearing adjourned, she said it would not be appropriate in such an emotional setting.
Ed Meyer can be reached at 330-996-3784 or emeyer@thebeaconjournal.com.