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Chipotle Bosses Accused Of Insider Trading During Bacteria Scandals
By
Scott Heins
Published Jun 19, 2016
Modified Jun 19, 2016
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By
Scott Heins
Published Jun 19, 2016
Modified Jun 19, 2016
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Poor Chipotle. What began as a brand built on lofty images of clean business and safe ingredients has been, over the years, picketed for underpaying farm workers, hard-pressed for "naturally raised" cows, and dogged by in-store outbreaks of E. Coli, Salmonella, and Norovirus. What happened, indeed?
Closing all of its locations for a company-wide health retraining may have helped with kitchen safety, but the burrito megachain's corporate allegedly needs a timeout as well. Shareholders are suing the company, alleging that executives, including ex-CEO and founder Steve Ellis, sold over $78 million in company shares "while the stock price was artificially inflated and before the fraud was exposed."
Colorado Public Radio reports that the lawsuit accuses Chipotle higher-ups of acting on inside information that allowed them to sell off millions of dollars in shares just before news of the company's food safety woes became public.
Also included in the lawsuit are allegations that Chipotle execs knowingly kept shareholders in the dark about "subpar food safety standards adhered to at various Chipotle restaurants," making it impossible for them to buy and sell stock based on truthful information. A Chipotle rep could only tell CPR that "the Company intends to defend these cases vigorously."
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Scott Heins
Scott Heins is a freelance photo and video journalist based in New York City, and a frequent contributor to Gothamist + WNYC. His work often centers around labor rights, housing, and policing. In 2018-2019 he traveled to four states while covering a wave of public school teachers strikes, with work featured in The New York Times, The Intercept, Getty Images, Splinter, and Bloomberg Photos. Scott is a dues-paying member of the National Writers Union's Freelance Solidarity Project.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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