Frisch’s chain accuses former official of embezzling

The operator of the Frisch’s Big Boy chain has alleged in a lawsuit filing that a former executive had embezzled $3.3 million from the Cincinnati-based company over a three-year period.

Frisch’s Restaurants said it has also notified law-enforcement authorities and is continuing to assess its finances.

In a suit filed in the Court of Common Pleas for Hamilton County, Ohio, Frisch’s is seeking to recover the lost funds. It alleges that former assistant treasurer Michael Hudson diverted the money by forging payroll documents and making false accounting entries in the company’s books.

Frisch’s said in announcing the suit that Hudson has admitted his actions. Hudson has yet to publicly comment on the lawsuit, and it could not be independently confirmed that he has acknowledged any wrongdoing.

He worked for Frisch’s for 32 years before being fired for the alleged misconduct.

"As a precautionary measure, the company is implementing an additional layer of checks and balances in our accounting systems to protect against this type of fraudulent behavior in the future," Frisch’s CEO Craig Maier said in a statement announcing the lawsuit.

Members help make our journalism possible. Become a Restaurant Business member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.

Multimedia

Exclusive Content

Financing

Despite their complaints, customers keep flocking to Chipotle

The Bottom Line: The chain continued to be a juggernaut last quarter, with strong sales and traffic growth, despite frequent social media complaints about shrinkflation or other challenges.

Operations

Hitting resistance elsewhere, ghost kitchens and virtual concepts find a happy home in family dining

Reality Check: Old-guard chains are finding the alternative operations to be persistently effective side hustles.

Financing

The Tijuana Flats bankruptcy highlights the dangers of menu miscues

The Bottom Line: The fast-casual chain’s problems following new menu debuts in 2021 and 2022 show that adding new items isn’t always the right idea.

Trending

More from our partners