Lynn pub hit with 10-day suspension

LYNN – The Lynn Licensing Board slapped Raffi’s Place at 408 Summer St. with a 10-day suspension for overcrowding violations Tuesday.The suspension will take effect July 4.In the early morning hours of May 12, the Lynn Police Special Investigations Unit (SIU) said they patrolled the area of the pub and noticed the parking lot of Raffi’s and the surrounding streets were filled with parked vehicles.Taking note of each person who walked out of the pub with a counter, the officers allegedly witnessed 137 patrons and later found 16 employees inside.With a temporary occupancy permit of 115, the pub reportedly had 38 more people than legally allowed.Owner Rafael A. Guzman protested the overcrowding charges and said he only had 98 people in the pub at the same time Lynn police counted a much higher amount.”I have a photocopy of the heads that were in the pub at 12:30 a.m. from my surveillance camera, so you can punish me, but I know that I did not have 137 people in the bar at that time,” he said.City attorney Vincent Phelan questioned Guzman as to why he did not present materials from the surveillance camera prior to the meeting to dispute the charges.Guzman did not directly address Phelan’s question, but instead reiterated the number of people he counted in the pub, and said he stopped patrons from entering the bar at 12:20 a.m.”I kept the number at 98 people because that’s my magic number,” he said. “This is insulting to have to be here because no one was in there at 12:55 a.m. I was closing the bar.”Licensing Board chairman Richard Coppinger said the evidence presented to the board regarding Guzman’s violations is tough to dispute.”There is testimony from Roger Ennis (chief building inspector for the Inspectional Services Department) that the temporary occupancy is 115, and you agreed to that, then you had a problem with it and we issued you a suspension,” he said. “Now there is testimony from the Lynn Police of overcrowding again and you violated it (permit).”Guzman quietly replied, “I did not.”In reference to Guzman’s surveillance tape, which he said does not show the Lynn Police walking into the pub at 12:55 a.m., Detective Paul Holey said he would like to see the 15 minutes on the tape that is reportedly unaccounted for.”For some reason, the tape just stopped at 12:40 a.m.?” he asked.Shuffling through documents, Guzman said, “It (the footage) should be there.”In addition to the latest infraction, the pub was previously issued a 10-day suspension in April for an overcrowding violation that occurred March 31.That charge was later appealed by Guzman and will be discussed before the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) July 9.Guzman now has the right to appeal the latest suspension.