Former Manager of Landmark NJ Diner Indicted in Murder for Hire Plot

New Jersey is known for its diners. The Tick Tock Diner in Clifton is among the most famous, and now a former manager could soon be infamous. Acting State Attorney General John Hoffman says was indicted today on charges that he tried to hire a hit man to murder his uncle.

Spyropoulos allegedly attempted to hire a hit man to kill his uncle who manages the Tick Tock Diner in Manhattan and is a co-owner of that diner as well as the diner in Clifton. Spyropoulos allegedly was bitter about how much the uncle controlled and profited from the two family-owned diners and wanted to increase his own role in the ownership and management of the Tick Tock Diner in Clifton.

According to Hoffman, Spyropoulos allegedly wanted the hit man to torture or threaten the uncle to get the combination to the safe at the diner in Manhattan, so Spyropoulos could steal the large sum of cash he believed his uncle kept there.

The plot unraveled because, when he allegedly sought help in finding an assassin, the person he approached was an informant for the State Police. The informant alerted the State Police, who arranged for an undercover detective to pose as the ‘hit man.’

“The New Jersey State Police prevented a case of bad blood within a family business from turning into a case of cold-blooded murder,” said Hoffman. “If there had not been a State Police informant and an undercover detective positioned to foil this murder plot, the result would have been tragic, because Spyropoulos allegedly took every step necessary to hire and equip men he believed would brutally murder his uncle and steal his money.”

The Division of Criminal Justice Gangs & Organized Crime Bureau obtained an indictment charging Spyropoulos with conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder, attempted robbery, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon, and unlawful transfer of a weapon.