Las Vegas- The pregnant wife of strip club manager Robert “Bobby” D’Apice was allowed to surrender Thursday in her tax evasion case, but relatives expressed outrage after learning she would have to spend the night in custody.

“It’s a witch hunt,” said the woman’s father, Michael Rubino.

D’Apice, a shift manager at the Crazy Horse Too topless club, was arrested Wednesday at the business after a federal grand jury charged him with racketeering, making false statements and tax evasion.

His wife, Nicole Rubino, was charged only with tax evasion and was allowed to surrender Thursday morning at the Lloyd George U.S. Courthouse.

“It’s such a frivolous charge,” Michael Rubino said.

After the couple’s initial court appearance later in the day, their supporters accused authorities of using the pair to catch their real target: Crazy Horse Too owner Rick Rizzolo, who has been under investigation for at least a decade.

“I think it’s clear they’re trying to pressure Rizzolo,” said D’Apice’s former attorney, Steven Stone. “To pressure Rizzolo, they’re going after Bobby. To go after Bobby, they’re going after his wife.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Johnson, who is prosecuting the case, declined to comment.

Court records indicate that authorities have been investigating links between the Crazy Horse Too and organized crime, but the indictment against D’Apice focuses on allegations that he and others at the strip club have used force to compel customers to pay disputed charges.

The racketeering charge against D’Apice accuses him of extortion, robbery and kidnapping.

Nicole Rubino’s mother, Joan, said authorities have harassed her daughter since late November, when FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents searched the Las Vegas home she shares with her husband and removed items, including her wedding ring.

Relatives described Nicole Rubino, 28, as a former hairdresser who stopped working in 2002 because of medical problems.

They said the woman, who is four months pregnant with her first child, has had to undergo two foot surgeries since she quit working. She married D’Apice, who is 50, in March.

D’Apice, a former boyfriend of porn queen Marilyn Chambers, has prior criminal convictions. Michael Rubino said his daughter has no prior criminal record.

“The only record she has is she has an Italian last name,” he said.

Michael Rubino said he testified before a grand jury in December, two weeks after investigators showed up at his business and questioned him.

He said he was asked how he paid for his daughter’s wedding, and he told authorities he came up with the money by remortgaging his house.

“I paid almost $20,000 out of my own pocket,” said Michael Rubino, who owns an auto body shop.

The tax evasion charge against D’Apice and Nicole Rubino accuses the couple of attempting to evade the payment of more than $40,000 since 1997.

According to the indictment, they have attempted to conceal the “the nature and extent of D’Apice’s assets by titling them” in the names of others, including his wife.

Nicole Rubino’s uncle, Robert Giaquinta, said she purchased the couple’s home before their marriage in her own name, using proceeds from a condominium she sold before she met D’Apice.

He said the two also signed a prenuptial agreement because Nicole Rubino knew D’Apice had tax problems. D’Apice has been negotiating with the IRS to solve the issue for the past two or three years, Giaquinta said.

Records show that Nicole Rubino purchased the couple’s 2,640-square-foot home in March 2003 for $280,000. The four-bedroom home, which has a pool, is located in Peccole Ranch.

D’Apice and his wife made their initial court appearance Thursday with a third defendant, former Crazy Horse Too cocktail waitress Paula McBride. The 27-year-old Henderson woman was arrested Wednesday on charges of making false statements to a grand jury.

On the recommendation of prosecutors, U.S. Magistrate Judge Robert Johnston released McBride on her own recognizance.

Nicole Rubino’s relatives expected Johnston to order her release, too, but the judge said he could not proceed with her case until she had an attorney.

“I have no authority to release her until we have a hearing,” Johnston said.

The judge postponed the hearing for Nicole Rubino and her husband until this afternoon.

Stone traveled from Southern California for the hearing and planned to represent both D’Apice and his wife solely for their initial appearance, but Johnston would not allow the temporary representation.

It is typically considered a conflict of interest for an attorney to represent two defendants in the same case. In addition, Stone said he lacks the qualifications to defend a criminal tax evasion case.

He said D’Apice and his wife did not have a chance before Thursday’s hearing to find lawyers who can represent them for the duration of the case.

“It’s hard to do it when you’re in jail,” Stone said. “It’s hard to get yourself an attorney when you’re behind bars.”

An attorney from the federal public defender’s office was appointed to represent McBride, which meant no one else from the office could be appointed to represent her co-defendants.

Stone said representatives of the public defender’s office had the responsibility of finding alternate counsel for D’Apice and his wife.

“I don’t know why they didn’t,” the lawyer said.

Assistant Federal Public Defender Alexander Modaber, who appeared in court on McBride’s behalf, could not be reached for comment after the hearing.

D’Apice was brought to court wearing the same brown, pinstriped suit — minus the tie — that he was wearing when agents arrested him the previous day. Prisoners typically are not allowed to possess ties or similar items that can be used for suicide attempts.

When Johnston asked D’Apice whether he would be able to hire an attorney, the defendant replied, “Yes, I am.”

McBride told the judge she could not afford to hire a lawyer. After one was appointed, she pleaded innocent to the charges against her, and a trial was scheduled for March 28.

Nicole Rubino seemed confused when Johnston addressed her case.

“From what I understand, I don’t have a lawyer, right?” she asked the judge.

Johnston explained that the arrangements with her attorney had fallen apart prior to the hearing, and no other attorneys would be available to take her case until today.

Nicole Rubino said she could not afford to hire a lawyer. Johnston said he would appoint separate attorneys to represent the woman and her husband.

McBride is accused of making false statements when she testified before a grand jury in August 2002.

At the hearing, according to the indictment, she denied telling FBI agents that she had seen D’Apice leave the Crazy Horse Too with Kansas City tourist Kirk Henry, who claims D’Apice broke his neck outside the business in September 2001.

D’Apice is accused of making false statements to a grand jury in January 2003, when he denied pushing Henry or causing him to fall to the ground.

Stone said he represented D’Apice when he appeared before the panel.

“I did as much then as I did today: sit in the hallway,” the lawyer said.

Defense attorneys are not allowed to attend grand jury proceedings, which take place behind closed doors.

Stone said his client was not a target of the grand jury investigation when he was subpoenaed to testify and therefore could not exercise his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Dozens of law enforcement officials raided the Crazy Horse Too in February 2003, searching for links between the business and organized crime.