The former owner of now-shuttered Denver restaurant AJ’s Pit Bar-B-Q has been indicted on federal fraud charges, accused of using false information about his businesses to obtain COVID-era business relief funds and using the money for personal purchases.

Jared Leonard was indicted in June by a grand jury in U.S. District Court in northern Illinois, according to federal court documents. The indictment states that he owned businesses in Chicago and Colorado. He received loans totaling more than $1.9 million, according to the indictment.

The indictment alleges Leonard caused false information about his businesses to be included on applications for CARES Act relief funds. He certified the loans would be used only for allowed business purposes, but instead used the proceeds “to make purchases for his personal benefit,” the indictment says, including a $1.2 million home in Evergreen.

The federal indictment says that, in addition to AJ’s, fraudulent applications were submitted on behalf of Grabowski’s Pizzeria in Denver and JLSS Holdings in Evergreen, as well as multiple businesses in Chicago.

For the complete story and other stories, visit Denver Gazette news partner 9NEWS.