Rittenhouse Chef Alex Capasso Arrested for Child Pornography

Alex Capasso | Photo via an archived version of the Crow & the Pitcher website.

Alex Capasso has long been a part of the Philadelphia-area restaurant scene. He worked at Georges Perrier’s Brasserie Perrier before opening the acclaimed Blackbird Dining Establishment in Collingswood and, most recently, Crow & the Pitcher in Rittenhouse Square. But now Capasso is in jail facing child pornography allegations, as first reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer.

According to court documents, Capasso has been charged with one count of distribution of child pornography by the United States Attorney in Washington D.C.

The feds say that on July 6th, Capasso, eventually identifying himself as “Mike” from the “Philly” area, responded to an online advertisement geared toward men interested in sex with children and incest. Unfortunately for Capasso, that ad was placed by an undercover agent working for a joint task force of the Washington, D.C., police and the FBI.

“100% serious!” Capasso allegedly wrote in response to the ad. “NO LIMITS. NOTHING TOO NASTY. yes even the illegal stuff. If you’re serious, lmk.”

The next day, the undercover agent replied to Capasso, claiming to be the father of a nine-year-old girl. The agent told Capasso that he was into “taboo.”

According to court documents, Capasso wrote back: “Very nice. I have a daughter on the way,” then said he couldn’t wait to abuse her. (Friends of Capasso confirm that his girlfriend is pregnant.) And Capasso allegedly added that he used to abuse his ex-girlfriend’s niece when she was five.

The undercover agent then asked Capasso to share pictures of his niece or “any other special pics,” and Capasso allegedly emailed the agent a photo. According to a court filing, that photo depicted “a prepubescent girl, approximately 5-6 years old … lying on her stomach” while a man’s hand touched near her genitals. According to the documents, the girl’s face is not in the photo.

Soon, the conversation moved to text messaging via cell phones. (The phone number cited by federal authorities in court documents is, in fact, Capasso’s cell phone number, according to two people who know him personally.) Capasso is accused of using the phone to text the agent another pornographic image of a girl of the same age as the previous girl.

The agent eventually asked Capasso if he would travel to Washington D.C. to have sex with the supposed nine-year-old girl, and Capasso allegedly responded, “I would do that in a heartbeat.”

After a prolonged and graphic text exchange, Capasso allegedly sent the agent one photo of himself.

Federal authorities subpoenaed information about the cell phone in question, which led them right to Capasso’s real name, email account, and home address. They say they Googled Capasso’s name and found articles about him and his restaurants and matched the press photos of Capasso with the photograph he sent to the agent.

On Monday, Capasso was arrested. (One of his partners in Crow & the Pitcher says that Capasso had been “missing” for a week and that everyone is “completely shocked.”) Authorities say Capasso admitted to sending child pornography to someone in Washington, D.C., but he claimed that they were only Internet photos and did not depict sexual abuse of his niece. Capasso’s ex-girlfriend has also been arrested and charged with production of child pornography. According to court documents, agents found images of the ex-girlfriend involved in sexual acts with her niece.

“It’s unbelievable,” says one Philadelphia chef, a longtime acquaintance of Capasso’s. “It’s just sick.”

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