Lawsuit alleges sexual abuse of minors at Waynesville Bojangles
This Bojangles near Lake Junaluska in Haywood County is the subject of the lawsuit.
Cory Vaillancourt photo
An Asheville law firm has filed a civil suit on behalf of two minor female clients alleging that the girls were sexually abused while employed at a Bojangles fast food restaurant near Lake Junaluska in Haywood County.
According to a press release, the suit, filed June 17 by attorneys with Lanier Law Group, alleges that the company, BOJ of WNC, had a responsibility to “use reasonable care to supervise, monitor, instruct, and train its employees, agents, and/or representatives in the identification, prevention and reporting of sexual harassment and that they negligently failed to do so.”
The complaint alleges that a man, Dylan Sain, 28, was the manager of the Bojangles restaurant at 1119 Dellwood Road, and through that supervisory position, leveraged his authority to “groom” and “sexually abuse” the plaintiffs, including sending “obscene” photographs of himself to the girls, who are referred to as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 in the suit. While the girls’ identities are protected, the suit notes that one was born in 2008 and the other 2009.
In addition, the suit also claims that the district manager, Michael Godey, ignored complaints from the girls and even defended Sain.
The suit notes that the plaintiffs were employed by Bojangles starting about April 2024 and worked under Sain, who was the general manager at the time. It alleges that Sain “openly and brazenly” used his position of authority to sexually abuse the girls, using threats and intimidation to “force” them to perform sexual acts on him. This included using “coercive and grooming” behavior, including providing favorable treatment to them, even giving pay raises, according to the suit.
“Numerous times Sain took Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 individually into his office at the subject Bojangles where he would sexually abuse them, including forcing them to perform oral sex on him,” the suit reads, adding that Sain also sent explicit photos of himself to the girls.
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Dylan Sain. File photo
The suit further alleges that when multiple employees raised concerns with Godey that he failed to protect the victims and told those employees who complained that they were “jealous” of perceived preferential treatment the girls received. Godey allegedly even instructed Sain to fire one of the girls because of their “relationship.” The suit claims that at least five young female employees may have been sexually abused while working at the Waynesville Bojangles.
“Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2, Defendant BOJ and Defendant Bojangles did nothing to stop this abhorrent behavior and did nothing to protect Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 from its/their pedophile employee,” the suit reads.
Lisa Lanier, founder of her namesake law firm, told The Smoky Mountain News that at least one of the victims was earning high school credit through what’s known as a “work release” program through which a student can earn high school credits while working a job to earn a little money. She didn’t have a car and walked to the restaurant. These two elements gave Sain a good deal of leverage over the victim, Lanier said.
Criminal charges bolster the victims’ claims. In April, Sain was indicted by a Haywood County Grand Jury on four counts of indecent liberties with a child and one count statutory sex offense with a person under the age of 15. In May, he was hit with charges on three more counts of indecent liberties with a child, three counts of disseminating obscene material and four counts of third-degree exploitation of a minor.
The Haywood County lawsuit is similar to another filed in federal court against BOJ of WNC in 2021 that alleged that a “manager or supervisor” of an Augusta, Georgia Bojangles named Nickolous McLamore forcibly raped and otherwise abused a minor employee and that others who knew about McLamore’s offenses failed to prevent further abuse.
“If BOJ had terminated McLamore or taken sufficient action against him when BOJ first learned about McLamore’s sexually inappropriate behavior toward other employees, McLamore would not have later raped [the victim],” that suit claims.
That case is still pending.
BOJ of WNC is the largest Bojangles franchisee with well over 100 restaurants. Records indicate that the LLC is based out of Arden and nets about $5.6 million in revenue annually. According to the BOJ of WNC website , it has franchises in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Kentucky and Ohio.
Last year, BOJ of WNC settled with the U.S. Department of Labor after being found to work children longer than legally allowed while also assigning them “dangerous tasks.” In the release, DOL states that the company employed 13 children to work at one restaurant more than three hours a day and during school hours, which violates child labor provisions and the Fair Labor Standards Act. The company was assessed a $27,586 civil penalty.
It was the second time in less than two years the company was cited for such violations. In 2022, it was hit with a $11,744 fine in a similar case.
As a part of the more recent agreement, BOJ of WNC also took steps to ensure future compliance, including requiring all 14- and 15-year-old workers, and their parents or guardians, to sign an understanding of the labor occupational and hours requirements under the law. It also requires area directors to perform quarterly reviews of time records for that same age group. However, it seems the added oversight did little to prevent or even intervene in the alleged abuses.
The plaintiffs are ultimately seeking over $25,000 in damages, meaning the case will be heard in Haywood County Superior Court.
“Lanier Law Group is seeking witnesses or victims with firsthand knowledge of the abusive and negligent acts that occurred at the Bojangles located at 1119 Dellwood Road, Waynesville, NC, and/or witnesses with information about the alleged role of BOJ of WNC, LLC, Bojangles OPCO, LLC, Michael Godey, and/or Dylan Sain. Please contact Lisa Lanier or Bobby Jenkins at 910-484-3333 with information,” the release reads.
Lanier, in her conversation with SMN echoed the sentiment and reiterated her firm’s commitment to the case.
“We’re going no holds barred on this case,” she said.
