As if Chipotle Mexican Grill didn’t already have enough headaches to manage, now one of its high-level executives has been charged in a New York City drug bust, according to the New York Daily News.
Mark Crumpacker, the restaurant chain’s chief marketing and development officer, was one of the “repeat customers” ensnared in a New York Police Department drug bust.
City detectives had been investigating a narcotics trafficking ring that allegedly oversaw the sale of $75,000 worth of cocaine over the course of a year. The ring, based out of New York’s Lower East Side, allegedly used delis and Duane Reade and CVS drugstores as cocaine drop-off locations for customers throughout Manhattan, according to a June 30 statement from the New York County District Attorney’s Office.
The investigation led to the arrest of a suspected cocaine kingpin and three of his dealers.
“Selling cocaine in a variety of bars and clubs throughout Manhattan, the ringleader also allegedly sold to NYPD undercover [officers] on more than a dozen instances,” the DA said.
Chipotle did not respond to requests for a comment. But a spokesman for the Denver-based company told Bloomberg that Crumpacker has been put on administrative leave “in order to remain focused on the operation of our business and to allow Mark to focus on these personal matters.”
News of the arrest only adds to the problems Chipotle’s leadership team must work through, as it continues to forge through the aftermath of a food safety scare that hobbled its business and reputation. The company will next report earnings on July 21.