The family of a Domino's delivery driver who was murdered in Boston in 2010, has filed a hefty suit against the pizza giant, claiming negligence and wrongful death.
According to Boston.com, the family is asking for $15 million from both Domino's Pizza and Deutsche Bank, which owned the property where the crime happened.
Nova's son, Irving Lara, who is the administrator of his estate, filed the suit last week in Suffolk Superior Court in Massachusetts.
Richel Nova, 58, was killed on Sept. 1, 2010, while delivering pizza to a run-down, two-story home. He was allegedly lured inside and stabbed 16 times. Nova was also robbed of less than $150.
The three people involved in the incident confessed to Boston police and have since pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges. They are currently being held without bail and are not named in this lawsuit.
The suit claims Nova's coworker told the perpetrators that he would have cash on him during the delivery and failed to confirm a callback number. This, according to the suit, "created an elevated risk of criminal assault."
The Domino's unit is also accused of negligence in sending Nova to the rear of a building, outside of public view. At the time of the crime, the company had no policies posted regarding delivery driver security, according to prosecuting attorney Howard J. Wayne, who added, "Domino's conduct was a proximate cause of the assault, battery, false imprisonment and death of Richel Nova."
Deutsche was named for failing to secure the two-story building. The space was vacant for two years and did not post "no-tresspassing" signs.
From the story:
A spokesman for Domino's said it would be "inappropriate" to comment on the allegations in the suit. "We were horrified by the crime and deeply saddened by the loss of Mr. Nova, an innocent man simply trying to earn some money delivering pizza. We were among those who contributed to the trust fund created for his children," Tim McIntyre, vice president for communications at the company.
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