CUPPY’S COFFEE: Attorney Rudy Harper & Assistant Desiree (Reportedly) Resign
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It’s been reported that Cuppy’s Coffee in-house attorney Rudy Harper and Desiree Kahn, the Cuppy’s Coffee legal assistant in charge of handling refunds, resigned Wednesday, September 10th.
Harper and Kahn reportedly stayed behind in Ft. Walton Beach after a limited number of employees were invited to relocate to the new home office in Muscle Shoals, AL. Not receiving a paycheck and a lawsuit from the landlord over nonpayment of rent are likely factors in their abrupt departure.
One commenter on Blue Mau Mau wrote:
The last attorney left is Lou. Is he even allowed to practice law in the state of Florida or Alabama?
With all of the legal issues Cuppy’s is facing, perhaps it should have been high on Cuppy’s priority list to at least pay their attorney his paycheck.
What do you think? Are there any Corporate employees left in Florida? Did the Alabama “Dream Team” get paid? Share a comment below.
I received a copy of this e-mail that was sent to Dale Nabors from a current employ-I think it was from Steve in the finance dept
Dale, I sent you a text message early today “begging” you to please help us out for the sake of the two small children’s lives you are affecting,my grandaughter Kaliegh and my grandson Triston.They are both just two years old and they certainly deserve better than what is about to happen to them because you can’t seem to find it in your heart to help us in these dire times for us. Our power will be cut off in the next few days,if we don’t have rent by tomorrow we will be asked to leave our home.We have nine dollars in our bank account and can,t even get a response from you.I was obviously wrong about you,you are not a good person.Imagine if your children were put in the position that you are putting these two year olds in.I know for a fact that each and everyone of your employees would give the shirt off their back for the sake of your kids.But not you.You are about to get what you deserve.If I don’t receive my full paycheck tomorrow then I will be contacting the SBA administration and letting them know that I know for a fact that you committed fraud[Steve Ottjepka and John DeVine] and I will follow up with all the state investigating agencies.If this was about me then I would let it go but when you lack the human decency to treat people with the respect they deserve and refuse to do the right thing for the children then you are a person that does not deserve to continue to enjoy even the simple pleasures of life[watching your kids grow].Even after all of this is over[you filing bankruptcy seems to be the rumor] I am the type of person that will not rest until you have gone through exactly what you have put my family through.Do you know that Amy Rynearson is pregnant and is expecting December 1st? How can you do this to her family? You have asked people to follow you to Alabama and you are prepared to leave them stranded with no regard for their families.Do not take this as a threat,I have been loyal up until today but the loyalty ends today.You need to be taught a lesson of life and if God has put me in the position to teach you that lesson then I will devote whatever time and energy is needed for me to fulfill this mission.You are about to suffer the consequences of not showing common decency to your fellow man.Even as I write this e-mail I will ask God that your soul be spared and that your children never be put in the position of having to rely on the morals of a person such as their father.Whatever actions I will be taking in the future regarding you I trust that the Good Lord will forgive me for he knows the task I am about to take on.God save the people you have screwed[Franchisees and Employees].So if my paycheck does not show up tomorrow then I will put my plan “B” in motion[I always told you I would have a plan “B”].You and I will see each other again,I guarantee this,I am not sure when I will be there but rest assured I will show up either at your house or at work so that you and I can “settle our differences”.It might not happen tomorrow or next week but it will happen eventually.The last thing I have to say is stop stringing your employees and Franchisees along.I have tried to let as many people I can get a hold of that you have no intentions of getting them built out and I hope the employees are starting to see that you have destroyed Cuppy’s and you are prepared to take them down with you. May God have mercy on your soul.
Guest:
Thanks for an interesting email, allegedly from a Cuppy’s Coffee named Steve.
Here’s an employee who works for someone he alleges has committed fraud and “screwed” franchisees and employees.
This highly ethical employee threatens that if he doesn’t get his “cut,” he will squeal to the Feds and embark on a God-ordained mission to teach his ex-boss a lesson.
(However, “Do not take this as a threat” he instructs” :))
If he DOES get his share of the loot, he will remain silent because Jesus is cool with fraud if the check clears.
I wonder why Steve Ottjepka and John DeVine were singled out? If money did not go to it’s intended purpose, then Dale committed fraud with every dollar he took, not just with them. Steve from finance was the man who called people for money. He played a key part in the process. Of course he will turn over evidence, probably as part of the plea bargain.
Who are Steve Ottjepka and John DeVine?
why do franchisees come across as being just when they whine about the money they got screwed out of but when an employee gets screwed and whines they don’t care. I’m thinking that each franchisee is only out for themselves here and if the other franchisees don’t get their money thats too bad.This site is full of hypocrites.
Maybe it is because employees, including the one being discussed here, were paid with money which was taken from franchisees under false pretenses. Many employees knew about what Morg and Dale were up to and did nothing about it until the paychecks dried up or the daycare closed.
Franchisees on the other hand have set up a user group/notice board and are supporting each other. We may even end up helping each other out with store openings. No franchisee has defrauded anyone of money either.
Which group has the hypocrites as members? Not the franchisees.
to Admin-how do you know Steve is not talking to the feds right now? I’m thinking he is using any tactic he can to help his family survive[i.e. his e-mail]. If your family was” up against the wall” how would you react[try to be honest].
Steve Ottjepka and John DeVine are franchisees. They have an interesting story to tell.
Why is everyone criticizing the employee tactics being used to get what they are owed?This does nothing to help get their money.You should be applauding the efforts to stop this man[Dale Nabors].It seems none of the franchisees have enough balls to do anything except blog on this site and pass judgement on the ex employees.
None of the franchisees know which employees were aware yet they will pass judgement on all of them and if the innocent ones get hurt then so be it.This sounds like a Dale Nabors philosophy.
You’re right, anyone at Cuppy’s completely oblivious to what was going on has my sympathies. This guy doesn’t.
Let me guess-you got screwed out of money a long time ago and this is as far as you’ve got to getting your money back.
Nope, actually, it wasn’t so long ago, since Dale owned the company in fact. But Morg got most of my money. I still have the daily emails from Steve asking when the money would be wired, several of us who have been screwed still have them. I wish I saved those voicemails too, the ones in which he told me the money had to be there before my equipment POs needed to be released. I remember he sounded a little cross with me on those messages, perhaps I made his job a little unpleasant.
It wasn’t so long ago that many franchisees were screwed out of money. Rick and Krista Noem, for example, and several others who have posted on this site. I am guessing Steve Ottjepka and John DeVine as well. I also hear July was a busy month for the Medina finance dept.
There isn’t enough money left for all of us to get everything back. But we can keep chasing these guys for years once we have a judgement against them.
I have been amazed at the response of Cuppy’s employees who are finally feeling the nails Dale Nabors is hammering in their coffins. It was not important to them when the franchisees were complaining and looking for answers but now we are supposed to feel sorry for them. Where was ‘Steve’s’ integrity when he was stealing money from us? One guest posted that all the franchisees do is blog, no action. Guess what ‘guest’, that is all some of us can do. That’s right, Dale isn’t just withholding a final paycheck but $125,000 from me. I have nothing left to fight with. I can’t afford an attorney, I have made complaint with the FTC, BBB and a couple police departments. Unfortunately that is all I can do. Oh yeah, I had to file bankruptcy on top of everything else. I feel for the two year olds, any decent person would. I also feel for my 19, 16, 15, 13 and 11 year olds. Good luck getting Dale or any of his muppets to feel for you. He’ll blow smoke up your a** if you are lucky and let you feel all warm and fuzzy about it then he’ll cut off communication with you! Enjoy it, I can’t think of anyone who deserves it more!
Guest wrote: None of the franchisees know which employees were aware yet they will pass judgement on all of them and if the innocent ones get hurt then so be it.
Guest: how could any employee not be aware of what was going on when this was blasted on the blogs for a year and a half – Morg even had employees posting happy happy “I love Cuppy’s” messages on the phony Cuppy’s blogs. And how could employees not be aware when they had to hear the incessant calls from franchisees seeking refunds not being returned…
I am really curious as to why anyone would work for this corrupt enterprise that lied to so many – and screwed over so many – and then act surprised when they get lied to and screwed over! Please explain.
I can only think of two explanations: they are really, really stupid OR they were promised some form of compensation that was better than they could get elsewhere and was worth gambling for. I can’t believe anyone is that stupid and can still dress themselves and get to work, so it must be the latter.
What did Dale offer you that would make you roll the dice and stay with this corrupt and failing enterprise? How much WERE you (supposed to be) making? Did you really think this would end well?
And if Steve is simultaneously threatening Dale with squealing to the Feds and is already talking to them, that speaks volumes about his honesty, doesn’t it? Perhaps the Lord said lying is OK if it involves getting paid – either by your employer or a franchisee.
Don’t you also find it amazing how a Franchisee could have sent money to this company when for a year and a half the blogs were warning them not to?Do you also think the Franchisees are “really,really stupid”?Steve probably realizes that the only way to beat this guy is to use the same tactics that Dale used on franchisees and employees alike. Again,more criticism for someone who is fighting Dale instead of using that energy to help get their money back-doesn’t make sense to me.
Guest it is hard to fight for our money back when emails, phone calls don’t get returned. At this point there is not enough out there for agencies to take it seriously. We have even asked the screwed over employees to identify themselves so they could work with us but they all continue to post as guests.
Guest, yes it is amazing that potential franchisees sent this company money. It is unnerving to me that I allowed the wool to be pulled over my eyes. It is more amazing to me that there are so many unscrupulous people living in the Fort Walton Beach area willing to continue to work for the very same company that stole so much money from innocent people seeking financial freedom. It is even more amazing that we didn’t hear about these blogs until the day we graduated from Cuppy’s College…I wonder if there was an inside leak. Back in February when we doing our due diligence the only bad comments we found online were concerning Java Jo’s and when we asked our kind salesman he told us everything we needed to hear
Steve probably realizes that the only way to beat this guy is to use the same tactics that Dale used on franchisees and employees alike.
Where does it recommend that approach in the Bible? Perhaps Steve the Christian needs to brush up on his scripture. I can’t recall Jesus recommending adopting the techniques of the moneylenders… nor the mandate to “be fraudulent and multiply.”
But worry not, Stevo. The second coming may be at hand. It is prophesied that Morg Morgan may return to lead his people back to Fort Walton Beach. I’m sure you’ll be seated at his right hand for your selfless devotion.
Meanwhile, if you need shelter I’m sure there are some abandoned mobile units currently unoccupied.
sounds like Admin is playing the role of God and Jesus and passing judgement on Steve when Admin is unaware of all the circumstances and facts-I think Admin is related to Dale
To all the ex-employees out there – get a grip. I am an ex-employee who has yet to receive a paycheck, but I am firmly aware that it is nothing compared to what the franchisees have and probably will lose. I don’t have my house and retirement on the line. I can get another job and possibly recover in the near future – the franchisees will unfortunately not be so lucky. So please ex-employees, keep your ranting about your one paycheck to yourself. Yes, the nonpayment has and will likely affect you and your family, but looking for sympathy on a site that was dedicated to people who have lost ten times what we have lost is in poor taste and insulting.
However, some fairness to the ex-employees are in order. It is easy to lump all the employees together as having been complicit in the big fail that was Cuppys. Yes we all worked here. But how many here actually knew everything that was going on? 80%? 50%? More likely less than 10%. It sounds unbelievable, but that is pretty accurate. Under Morg, every decision that had any effect on money went through him. The presidents, executive vps, vps, directors, etc, were that in name only. Even potential purchases involving just a couple of hundred dollars needed his control. Everything went through him. Everyone knew that money was coming in, and the only indication that money may not have been coming out was when the franchisees would call in concerned about progress. Under Morg, the pipeline was moving, but at a very slow pace, and the reasons Morg gave were always so believable. Maybe we were stupid for believing. It took waay too long for you guys to open, but we believed the line of crap that was being told to us to tell you. For that I apologize.
Under Dale, it stayed the same except for one important change. Absolutely no communication. Also, there was absolutely no money going out as far as we could tell (except to pay for Amy’s car and house). 3-4 people were fired every week for about 2 months, so everyone here was so on edge, especially as there was no communication except for the firings, so I know we weren’t doing our job to help you guys. Even when we did get it together to do our jobs, we had no direction or communication. When we did get a hold of Dale, he would either outright lie to us (which we believed the first time), or we simply would not get a call returned. We had nothing to tell you. You guys were calling us asking for help and I had nothing, and no one had any answers. Totally unacceptable, and I understand why you would cuss us out. I get it. Dale and Amy were the only ones that had any clue what was going on and Amy basically only repeated what Dale said. Although Steve was “director” of finance, he was in the same boat. He is a convenient target for your anger because he helped bring in the money, but we fell for the same line that you did. Our fault is that we also couldn’t believe it could be this bad. Once we all got together and everyone started talking about the areas that they knew about, is when we realized that Dale had totally destroyed this company. Morg had his faults, but his ability to cover up the flaws was not one of them.
That said, we are not, and should not be, looking for your sympathy. I truly wish you luck in getting your money back. I wish I could have helped you more. I wish I knew how bad this would be so I could have warned you.
That is really sinking to a new low, Guest. To actually accuse someone of being related to that piece of crap is immoral.
To all the ex-employees complaining about a paycheck, I will gladly trade you.
You take my financial issues:
Lost cash: over $50,000 (that is over 6 months worth of paychecks)
Rent on a dirt floor, unfinished building: $6000 / mo for 10 years
Bank loan of $185000: $3000 / mo until paid off
Credit cards: $300 / mo
Lost dream of owning our own business: Priceless
Sorry, just cant get too excited for you all. I am 43, bankrupt, and have to start over. We have lost pretty much everything to the company you worked for.
go somewhere else for sympathy.
Rick Noem
“…I will ask God that your soul be spared…”
“… I trust that the Good Lord will forgive me for he knows the task I am about to take on. God save the people you have screwed…”
“… May God have mercy on your soul.”
“… if God has put me in the position to teach you that lesson then I will devote whatever time and energy is needed for me to fulfill this mission.You are about to suffer the consequences of not showing common decency to your fellow man.”
Guest: Is this guy serious? Isn’t he one of those making the relentless calls to get franchisees to send their money in to the black hole pit of despair that is Elite manufacturing?
He should have no problem getting a good telemarketing job for Benny Hinn, Pat Robertson, etc. As a matter of fact, he could do great selling Green Prosperity Prayer Hankies:
The Green Prosperity Prayer Hankie Will Make You RICH!
http://www.franchisepick.com/the-green-prosperity-hankie-will-make-you-rich/
Maybe Reverend Stewart will finance a Prayer Hankie franchise for him!
jp:
Thanks for a rational, well-considered comment.
JP: Well said! I believe we all realize that all the employees are not bad people. There were several people who tried to be helpful throughout the process. The company was run by crooks and weasels who have to live with themselves. It is a shame that Dale has a family. I would hate to see my children looking up to a man like that for direction!
I must say… You have balls sir.
I am in shock that you would complain about missing 1 or 2 checks from this company. You worked for the company, you were well aware of what this company was doing yet you want the very franchisees that you helped rip off to feel sorry for you? I am an ex employee. I had nothing to do with the money that was coming in from franchisees but I knew deep down that something was fishy with the company. I just didn’t have any proof. You on the other hand do have proof yet you withheld that from the proper authorities. I am appald that I even worked for the company, I am even more appald that there were so many crocks that worked for this company, not just Morg or Dale but employees as well. As you have just proven some of the employees fall into the same catagory as Dale and Morg. Yes Morg and Dale wanted everyone to believe that everything was all hunky dory and that is what they sold to franchisees and employees but as I said before I knew something was fishy. If you are one of the employees that truley believed that everything was on the up and up then you are a very nieve person (and there was a lot of nieve employees there). If you are one of the employees that has proof of what was happening to the franchisee, then you deserve to be in jail right along side Morg and Dale.
For the franchisee, I hope to god that you all get your money back and I am very sorry for being a part of such a crocked company. Keep fighting. I have heard that there is another employee that has written proof of fraud. Hopefully Dale and Morg will be in jail very shortly.
As for jp, I agree with a lot of what you said, however I believe that you can add Robin Donlan and Frankie to the few that new what was going on. While I worked at the company, I was always told that money was coming in. I did NOT believe it. I talked to the franchisees every day. I tried to help as much as I could with what I was told. If I had proof of what I always felt, I would have happily given that to the franchisee and would have told them to run.
Rick – Well said. We have SO FAR lost $200,000 in this fiasco, it may go higher depending on attorney fees, rent on the lease, etc.
Unfortunately, we have no sympathy for the employees. They didn’t speak up until they found out that they were not one of the “chosen” going to Alabama, and to add insult to injury, didn’t even receive their last paycheck. There was never a hint in any of our numerous frantic calls that there was a problem. The franchisees had to get together and compare notes to realize the horrible truth.
I’m sure they didn’t know everything that was going on, but they had to realize that nothing good was happening. The frantic and then angry calls and e-mails, not one shop being opened, numerous franchisees paying rent on empty spaces!!!
Yes, we fell for it also, but we weren’t there to see that there were dozens of us in the same boat. Some sort of warning bell had to be triggered in their minds…
Rick Noem – I am very sorry regarding your losses, dont get me wrong, I am a fellow franchisee and licensee (never converted one license from JJ).
6000 a month for rent????? who talked you into that location? I was crunching numbers for 3-4 hours a day for MONTHS and was only making money at less than 2100 a month rent IF i sold 140 cups a day.
Guest: We were doing a bakery/cafe featuring Cuppy’s Coffee…We have prime retail space in the new downtown Fort Collins, CO. It is hard to find any retail space in this area for less than $30 a square foot (2013 square feet). Coffee was only a small part of what we would have done daily. We have a hospital across the street, new medical offices, 300 real estate agents above us..new shopping and library..we were set…Thanks Cuppys!
Has anyone been hearing this rumor that Brian Hayes and Morg Morgan are cooking up some kind of a plan to take over the company?
Any other company I would laugh this off… Cuppy’s? anything is possible.
Hi Guest, along with what Krista said, we also had AMD, HP, Intel plants all within walking distance. Not to mention the walk/bike path, water feature, and barbecue pit just outside our door.
The location was/is prime, making rent each month would not have been an issue. I am just sorry we cannot develop it.
I have heard that Morg was meeting with Dale to discuss his taking over the company. What good could come of the master scammer taking over Cuppys? Will Dale be a consultant again? Will Steve get his finance job back? Will Amy, Robin, Jessica and Theresa find true love?
Morg ran to mexico, your not gonna find him right now….medina starpoint had to be served via the florida secretary of state
If Morg is taking the company back, well by all means sign me up for another five stores….He’ll take my money but at least he’ll leave me feeling all warm and fuzzy about it!
Prozac… why don’t you take another pill or two? It’s been fairly pleasant not hearing from you.
This board would not be as interesting without Prozacs tell it like it is comments! Keep posting Prozac!
I could be like several people on this site with online multiple personality disorders, posting as “guests” pretending to be multiple people. Or maybe I have been doing that but don’t remember due to my short term memory loss. A side effect of being screwed by Cuppy’s.
I have heard that Morg was meeting with Dale to discuss his taking over the company. What good could come of the master scammer taking over Cuppys? Will Dale be a consultant again? Will Steve get his finance job back? Will Amy, Robin, Jessica and Theresa find true love?
Will Steve allow Dale’s soul to enter the Kingdom of Heaven? Will Theresa’s daughter open her Cuppy’s franchise goldmines in Colorado? Will Dale’s wife have to start buying faux Coach handbags?
Rumor has it that Brian Hayes has been working to get Morg and the band back together. Rumor has it that Morg and Dale are meeting in AL.
Morg Morgan taking Cuppy’s back & Brian Hayes…
will be doing build outs again. What the heck… they’re glutten for punishment. Also hear that Amy Hiller is so far up Morgs ass while he is in AL because she sees him being in charge again very soon. She goes whichever way the wind is blowing. It’s terrible when someone doesn’t know how to stand on their own two feet. Payroll has still not been paid. Not only for the FL ex employees final paycheck but the dumba$$es that moved to AL with Dale haven’t been paid for a month and a half. Unless you want to count the bad check Dale gave them that bounced. Does Dale think if Morg takes the company back that he can wash his hands clean of the cluster you know what? I don’t think so because Dale talked zees into sending in more $ & he still did not put that $ towards the zees projects. Fraud, fraud, fraud! Also, Morg is not in the clear either! The lawsuits are piling up against the company, Dale & Morg. You can run but you can’t hide!
Why would Morg possibly consider getting lured back in when the walls seem to be tumbling down, the ponzi scheme has been exposed and the Feds are rumored to be investigating?
Is the money really going to be there for the 160 unopened franchises?
Is he that foolish or is he that much smarter than everyone else?
Gotta give him credit for pulling it off to this point.
Maybe he plans to sell the assets (only) of Cuppy’s Coffee back to Roy Snowden and go back to being Java Jo’z.
Riiiiiiight… I can see it now. Morg has already made a clean getaway with our cash and now it’s someone else’s problem. He is laying in a hammock in Mexicao but – in a moment of clarity riddled with overwhelming guilt – he has travelled to AL to meet with Dale. In his car he has bags and bags of money and the meeting starts with “okay, let’s pay anyone that was screwed”. Dale nods willingly, they divide the money, we all receive checks by Federal Express tomorrow and anyone waiting to open will open by the 15th.
When you get out of quicksand you don’t walk back in it to grab your flip flop.
I think the main cause of confusion here, assuming we’re reasonable people, is that we are dealing with people who don’t think they have done anything wrong. And ex-employees and franchisees are on their side, praying for a resurrection. If Morg was indeed in Mexico, he took a break from his extended vacation to visit Muscle Shoals.
What should be the name for this soap opera? Guiding Lattes? All My Mochas? Fort Walton Beach? As the Cuppy turns? Wasn’t Dale a soap opera actor in the 80s? Was that his function as consultant, acting coach?
I would consider it to be a stupid move on Morg’s part but what the hell! He’s so loveable, everyone will be flocking at his feet.
Well I decided I’m not drinking the Kool-Aid this time.
The rumor is true. Morg and Brian are in AL to take the company back from Dale. Yes, Morg has made many mistakes and one of them was selling the company to Dale. Dale convinced him he could turn the company around in six months, but instead he ran it into the ground. We have all lost a lot of money since Dale took over the company. Morg may not have been the best finanacial manager, but at least stores were opening, vendors were being paid, and liens were not being put on our shops. I had many issues with Brian during Dale’s tenure, but realize now the issues were due to Dale tying his hands. Dale potrayed Morg and especially Brian as the bad guys, he told us many stories about them which are NOT remotely true. They are trying to salvage the company and start helping the franchisees. The only reason they are trying to take back Cuppy’s/Elite is to help people, not to sell the company’s assets and flee to Mexico. Brian has been helping us to get our store open; with the funds we have left, we could not do this without his help. At least there are a few good people out there to help us. It seems to me that Morg’s biggest failing is that he wanted to provide the best working environment he could for his staff, as well as helping the franchisees, and didn’t know how to balance this out,.
Two weeks ago, I drove 13 hrs to confront Dale after Eden pulled out of my store and spent 11 hrs with him the very next day. Result – he cried about not having any money. Where is the money that we have all forked over since Dale took control? I wired Dale $78,850 on August 7th and many other franchisees sent him money as well. He hasn’t opened one store, is not paying the vendors, he’s not even paying his employees!! Morg and Brian have been trying to figure out since Monday where the money is or went.
Hopefully they will be able to salvage the company.
I have been fighting for my money for over TWO years. You forked over almost $80K less than a MONTH ago?
Our initial payment was made two years ago, 10/16/2006. Total is $ 170,650, that doesn’t include the money we spent out of our pocket.
Nick, I am glad you are being built out. But I completely disagree with you on this point: Morg can’t be part of the problem and the solution to it. He took most of my money and plenty of other people’s money. The problems started well before Dale. I am just guessing here, but Brian is making a profit on your buildout and not doing it out of the goodness of his heart?
And I totaly agree with you.
It started well before Dale, Morg took $92,000 from us during his tenure. The second payment of $41,900 was made 12/7/07 for my second location and they promised to refund us if we didn’t go with it. Did we get our money back for the second location? The answer is NO. Was the money managed well during Morg’s tenure? NO. I don’t think any of us can know for sure, but I don’t think Morg would have taken the money from us knowing he was not going to open our stores, which Dale did do. Morg knew there was a problem, and like many of us, believed Dale when he said he could fix the problem.
Will Brian make a profit? Absolutely yes, but not much.
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