Jimmy John's Owner Now Under Fire For His Trophy Hunting

By Emma G. Gallegos in Food on Aug 3, 2015 10:40PM

The owner of sandwich-maker Jimmy John's is now facing heat for his alleged trophy hunting. Old photos that show Jimmy John Liautaud posing with elephants, rhinos and leopards made the rounds this weekend.

Entrepreneur Jonah Lupton tweeted out these photos that allegedly show Liautaud with his kills:

This isn't a new story—the blog Smile Politely published them in 2011—but the story now has legs again since the death of Cecil, Zimbabwe's beloved lion. Cecil was killed by reviled Minnesota dentist and trophy hunter Walter Palmer, and his death has sparked concern about endangered species and increasing revulsion at the practice of big-game hunting.

Liautaud hasn't officially commented on these photos. For what it's worth, internet bullshit detector Snopes says the photos are "probably real," and not just because it looks like Liautaud in the photos. Snopes notes that The Hunting Report has a record of a Jimmy John Liautaud (although misspelled "Liaufand") going on a big game hunt in Botswana for Elephant, Buffalo, and Zebra with Johan Calitz Safaris.

Jimmy John's is headquartered in Champaign, and came under fire last year for making its poor low-wage workers sign a non-compete so that they couldn't later work at, say, a local Subway or Potbelly's.