Last February restaurateur Jared Leonard showed Colorado just how dubious he had become, moving to Mexico with funds meant to go toward employees. His properties, including Campfire in Evergreen and AJ’s Pit Bar-B-Q in Denver, were seized by the government. Now, Leonard has been arrested and federal prosecutors claim he wrongly received more than $1 million in pandemic relief funds.
Many restaurant owners, vendors, and employees were burned by Leonard’s actions. For example, Fruition (now closed) and Mercantile founder Alex Seidel shared with us that he lost a lot of money in the transfer of his Littleton pizza spot to Leonard, who opened a Grabowski’s Pizzeria in the space.
In February, when the staff from AJ’s walked out, Jamie Shotton, owner of Westrail Tap & Grill in Lakewood received a text response from Leonard after news of ordeal was circulated around town. Shotton shared the information on Facebook. The text was long, but the gist of it denied stiffing employees, troubles with business service companies, and no intention of wrong doing.
However the people involved have another story, as does the government. Last month official charges were filed against him in Illinois, where he started his restaurant group and the chain Budlong Chicken. The federal prosecutors stated Leonard had applied for over $1.6 million in loans through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, which was created to help businesses weather the effects of 2020’s COVID-19 pandemic. Instead of using the money to support his restaurants, Leonard is accused of keeping funds for his own gain, including purchasing a house in Evergreen for over a million, which he paid for in cash.
According to information gathered by the Denver Post there was a lot of lying and underhand dealings going on. The article states: “According to the charges, Leonard lied about the number of employees and monthly payroll at restaurants in Denver and Chicago — including Grabowski’s Pizzeria and AJ’s Pit Bar-B-Q — in his applications for the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan funds. One restaurant, BBQ Supply Co. in Chicago, had closed in 2018, prosecutors say.”
While many people have expressed gratitude that Leonard has been arrested, they recognize the chances of seeing some of the money owed are slim based on how much he owes the government and possible jail time.
We don’t have details on where he was when he was arrested, but on July 6 he posted a photo of the wellness center called Sol y Sal, which he planned to open in Punta Mita, Mexico. While the overall situation is negative, one positive thing came out of it all. Last month former AJ’s pitmaster Patrick Klaiber joined forces with chef Manny Barella to buy the seized property and all the equipment. Now, we have the pleasure of dining at Riot BBQ, knowing the staff is well taken care of. And for now at least, Leonard is behind bars.
