Bar Staff Allegedly Altered Scene After Widower’s Collapse and Death, Police Report

A New York resident met a tragic end after suffering a head injury at a local bar, where he continued to be served alcohol beyond the legal closing hours, according to police reports.

John Acito, 68, frequented Dave’s Long Pond Pub in Greece, New York, on December 16, 2025, lingering there into the wee hours. The loyal customer, who had been coping with the loss of his wife since 2023, never returned home. The Greece Police Department disclosed that surveillance footage captured Acito “swaying, falling, and hitting his head on a table and the floor,” where he lay motionless for “30 to 40 minutes.”

Subsequently, three staff members from the bar informed authorities they discovered Acito unconscious outside the establishment. These employees are now facing charges for allegedly tampering with evidence.

According to local ABC station WHAM, law enforcement was alerted to the scene at 3:24 a.m. after receiving a call about an unresponsive individual in the parking lot. Acito was transported to the hospital with a “significant head injury.” After being in a coma for two weeks, he passed away on January 1.

The medical examiner determined that complications from the head injury led to his death, categorizing the incident as an accident.

But while the three bar employees — bar owner David Geer, 64; cook John Moore, 58; and bartender Crystal McWilliams, 42 — were not charged in connection with Acito’s death, police determined that their initial story did not add up.

Det. Sgt. Jeffrey Dill told WHAM that Acito was being served drinks as late as 3 a.m., an hour past the legal 2 a.m. closing time in New York’s Monroe County. Dill said that the employees “concocted a story to protect the bar.”

In the press release, police said surveillance video from the bar showed employees putting Acito’s jacket on the unconscious man and “moving him toward the front door.” Dill told WHAM that Geer, Moore, and McWilliams “dragged the victim by the door” to make it look like he had been outside, “and then they mopped up the drag marks from where they had dragged him from.”

Police said that Acito lay on the ground unconscious for “30 to 40 minutes” while the staff “continued closing duties.”

The medical examiner stated that the delay in getting Acito help did not contribute to his death. However, Dill told WHAM the workers “had an opportunity to get him help immediately, and they didn’t take that action. They were concerned with trying to protect the bar.”

Geer, Moore, and McWilliams were all charged with tampering with evidence, a felony. WHAM reported that they are expected to appear in Greece Town Court but dates have not been made public.