SantaCon president stole millions in charitable donations to fund luxury lifestyle, FBI says

The organizer behind SantaCon, a Santa Claus-themed pub crawl that raises money for local charities, is being charged with defrauding ticket-buyers and establishment owners.

On Wednesday, 50-year-old Stefan Pildes was arrested in New York and charged with wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

Prosecutors claim Pildes, who served as the president of and controlled the nonprofit entity that organizes the event called Participatory Safety Inc. (PSI), diverted funds that were meant to go to charity to his own accounts.

Per the indictment, from November 2019 through April 2026, Pildes allegedly defrauded tens of thousands of participants who bought tickets to SantaCon.

“As alleged, Stefan Pildes promoted SantaCon as an event grounded in charitable giving. But instead of donating the millions of dollars he raised, he ran his own con game,” Jay Clayton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a press release.

“He took advantage of New Yorkers’ generous holiday spirit to finance his lifestyle through personal expenses, big and small,” Clayton continued. “No matter how you dress it up, fraud is fraud. We are committed to protecting New Yorkers from those who exploit their enthusiasm and generosity.”

According to prosecutors, Pildes kept most of the event’s earnings, which come primarily from selling tickets, as well as from establishments that host the event, for himself. The organizer promoted the event on SantaCon’s website, which explained that donations would be split between various charities. Contributions from establishments were categorized as a “charitable commission” or “donation” of around 10% and 25% of sales.

The complaint alleges that Pildes’s donations accrued from 2019 to 2024 added up to $2 million in ticket sales and over $675,000 in charitable commissions, but that Pildes used the money to fund his own luxurious lifestyle. It alleged that he diverted funds to pay for renovations on his lakefront New Jersey property, vacations, a luxury vehicle, and more.

James C. Barnacle Jr., assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York City field office, said: “Stefan Pildes, the president of SantaCon, allegedly pocketed over half of the proceeds generated by his nonprofit to make personal purchases. Pildes allegedly stole Christmas from tens of thousands of victims and deprived local charities of more than 1 million dollars. The FBI continues to root out Scrooges that greedily exploit the goodwill of New Yorkers.”

Interestingly, it’s not the first time SantaCon has raised eyebrows. A 2023 Gothamist investigation revealed that from 2014 to 2022, less than a fifth of the event’s earnings went to charity. It also found that more than a third of the money went to people and groups connected to the annual Burning Man festival.

At the time, Pildes confirmed the expenditures, telling the outlet that the funds were part of a zero-interest loan that was repaid.

“Our mission is to bring more art out into the world,” Pildes said. “I want to continue to see more creative outlets and opportunities and more people in costume and more cheer being spread.”