Fact check: Jimmy John's founder did hunt big game, but is no longer sandwich shop's owner
Claim: Jimmy John's owner uses his money from the sandwich shop to kill endangered animals
A Facebook post from Feb. 9 that claims the owner of Jimmy John’s kills endangered animals – and allegedly shows him posing with them – is again being widely shared.
“Just a friendly reminder that the owner of JIMMY JOHNS uses the money made from his sandwich shops to KILL ENDANGERED ANIMALS!” the post reads. “Think about that next time you are there. Hopefully you won’t go there! Actually you better not go there lol!”
The photo collage that accompanies the post shows a man posing with multiple dead animals – including a shark, bear, rhino and elephants – with text reiterating the post’s claim.
The original post has over 1,700 comments and has been shared over 13,000 times. The person who posted the claim did not respond to USA TODAY’s request for comment.
Founder of Jimmy John’s did hunt big game
Jimmy John’s founder Jimmy John Liautaud did hunt big game, at one time.
Liautaud told the Chicago Tribune in 2015 that “the biggest misconception about him” is that people still point to photos of him posing with endangered animals he killed. At the time, the Tribune reported that the photos were 10 years old – making them now 15 years old.
“I choose to hunt and I choose to fish," Liautaud told the Tribune. "Everything I've done has been totally legal. And the meat has been eaten, if not by me than (sic) by someone I'm with. I don't hunt big African game anymore."
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Hunting Report, which keeps an online database of hunt reports and related articles, documented several of Liautaud’s hunts. The last hunt listed on its website took place in South Africa between March 26 and April 4, 2004. On that hunt, the major game killed included a rhino and lynx.
Original founder no longer owns Jimmy John’s
Liautaud is no longer the owner of Jimmy John’s. The sandwich shop is now owned by Inspire Brands. Inspire is one of the largest restaurant companies in the country, with over 11,100 restaurants under its umbrella, according to the company's website.
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Inspire completed its acquisition of Jimmy Johns on Oct. 18, 2019, per a news release from the company. As part of the acquisition, Liautaud stepped down as Chairman and is an adviser to the board, according to the Associated Press.
Liautaud did not respond to requests for comment by USA TODAY.
Our rating: Partly false
We rate the claim that the owner of Jimmy John’s uses his money from the sandwich chain to kill endangered animals as PARTLY FALSE, as some of it was not supported by our research. The sandwich shop’s founder, Jimmy John Liautaud, no longer owns the sandwich chain. Liautaud did hunt big game, but has not done so for years.
Our fact-check sources:
Chicago Tribune, "Jimmy John's founder opens up on expansion, big game hunting, possible IPO"
Inspire Brands, "Inspire Brands Completes Acquisition of Jimmy John’s"
USA TODAY (Associated Press), "The owner of Arby's acquires Jimmy John's Sandwiches"
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: Jimmy John's founder hunted big game before he sold chain
