Pedro Espada Ducked $7,200 Bill for Suits, Midtown Tailor Says Updated August 19, 2010 7:28am

Senator Pedro Espada, seen here on June 20, 2009, wearing one of several dapper suits in his wardrobe. A Midtown tailor is now suing the senator for stiffing him for $7,200 in custom suits. (AP Photo/Hans Pennink)

By Nicole Bode

DNAinfo Senior Editor

MANHATTAN – State Senator Pedro Espada allegedly stiffed a Midtown tailor on $7,200 in custom-made suits, ducking the bill while wearing the dapper duds around town, according to published reports.

The controversial senator, who was part of the team that shut down Albany last summer by threatening to defect to the Republican party, shot down tailors at the Custom Men store in Feb. 2009, after reportedly ordering six suits costing $1,200 apiece, the Village Voice reported.

Vijay Tharwani, the chief tailor at Custom Men on West 57th Street, promptly whipped up the suits using fabrics from Oscar de la Renta and Armani, then sent them over to Espada without demanding the normal up-front payment or deposit, according to reports.

Espada’s team declined to pay, saying the suits were in need of further alterations, but they never sent them back, according to the Voice.

The fed-up tailor and his colleagues eventually took their case to court, suing Espada this May to get the money back. Espada’s team shot back that they did return the suits, claiming the merchandise was defective, the Voice reported.

Yet Tharwani reportedly saw photos of Espada during the Albany shutdown debacle and confirmed that the well-fitting suit Espada was wearing was his handiwork, the Voice reported.

"So if he is wearing the suits, then they were not returned, correct?" Tharwani asked the Voice.

By Nicole Bode, DNAinfo.com

Follow Nicole on Twitter @nicolebode