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The owners of a fencing training school in the Tri-Valley are speaking out through their lawyers to deny allegations from Alameda County prosecutors that they bilked prospective immigrant instructors from Eastern Europe.
Bogdan Dolzhenko and Jeanne Amistoso were charged this month with felony labor violations and other allegations following an investigation initiated in response to a tip sent to the national human trafficking hotline in late 2024. After the Pleasanton Weekly published an article detailing the charges Wednesday, for which the defendants did not respond to email requests for comment, their attorneys followed up with a strong statement in defense Thursday afternoon.
“They are completely innocent of any wrongdoing, and we categorically reject the portrayal of their actions as exploitative. Nothing could be further from the truth,” attorneys Julia Jayne (who represents Dolzhenko) and Emily Dahm (who represents Amistoso) told the Weekly.
“We are confident the full facts will show they did everything possible to help these individuals and operated Prime Fencing Academy ethically,” the defense lawyers added. “It is deeply unfair that such unfounded allegations have been made against these kind-hearted individuals and a first-rate fencing instruction studio. We look forward to setting the record straight and restoring our clients’ and their business’s well-deserved good reputation.”
Dolzhenko, a former member of the Ukraine National Fencing Team, and his wife Amistoso, a fencing coach and athlete with notable finishes in senior division competitions in the U.S., remain out of custody and are scheduled to make their first court appearance in Dublin next Thursday (Jan. 22).
Dolzenkho, 31, is charged alone with four counts of wage theft and three counts of obtaining labor under false pretenses, and he and 63-year-old Amistoso together face four felony counts related to tax evasion and insurance fraud as well as misdemeanor failure to secure workers’ compensation. There are also special allegations for vulnerable victims, sophistication of crime, coercion and financial damages.
The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office launched a nearly year-long investigation against Dolzenkho, Amistoso and their Prime Fencing Academy that unearthed four former workers who alleged Dolzenkho recruited them from Poland and war-torn Ukraine to be fencing instructors at the couple’s Dublin-based school under false pretenses, according to court records.
“Once in the United States, the victims quickly realized that the $2500 monthly salary and 40 hour work week schedule they were originally promised were much different,” DA’s inspector James Henry wrote in a probable cause statement, later adding: “They were advised it was ‘customary’ in the United States to not get paid for the first month of work.”
The victims alleged they were underpaid and overworked for months, leading them to quit, while investigators also claim the couple paid below minimum wage, misclassified the immigrant employees as independent contractors and failed to follow tax, insurance and workers’ compensation laws.
The defense attorneys told the Weekly that the stated allegations “are false and profoundly misleading”.
“Mr. Dolzhenko and Ms. Amistoso helped these individuals temporarily relocate to the United States, provided housing and support, and acted at all times in good faith,” the lawyers said. “The fencers were paid fairly under mutually agreed upon terms, and none were ever forced to work excessive hours, nor was it possible for any of them to work as many hours as alleged.”
According to the DA inspector’s report, a separate federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is still pending.
Prime Fencing Academy, located in an office and industrial park on Sierra Court in Dublin, caters to fencers of all skill levels and ages, including a particular focus on youth athletes.
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