MACHIAS (AP) – A Bangor man who habitually complained of fake chest pains to avoid paying the tab for restaurant meals he had just eaten may have gotten his just desserts.

A Washington County Superior Court judge sentenced Elias I. Elias on Friday to 90 days in jail after he pleaded guilty to theft of services.

The sentence followed the recommendation of District Attorney Paul Cavanaugh, who said the Aug. 5 episode at the Townhouse Restaurant in Calais marked the 13th time that Elias, 54, had tried to skip out on the check by pretending that he had trouble breathing and was having a heart attack.

“He has 18 convictions just since 2003,” the year Elias moved to Maine from California, and has been jailed numerous times, Cavanaugh told Justice E. Allen Hunter.

In courtrooms in Penobscot, Piscataquis and Hancock counties, Elias has pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges, including false public report, criminal trespass and theft of services.

Three of the convictions involved similar restaurant scams – two in Ellsworth and one in Bar Harbor.

Elias would order dinner and drinks, eat and enjoy, then fake his need for medical assistance when the check arrived. He would be transported to a local hospital but usually leave before police arrived. The restaurant owner in Calais was skeptical, however, and called police right after he called for an ambulance.

Elias’ court-appointed attorney, Jeffrey Davidson of Cutler, told the judge that the homeless and unemployed man just wanted to eat a restaurant meal “like anybody else.” In the Calais case, the bill came to $39, wine included.

“Even if he didn’t have dignity, he wanted to feel like he did,” Davidson said.

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