Joyride Brewing co-owner accused of theft countersues for $170K

A minority owner of Joyride Brewing in Edgewater says accusations that he misappropriated $1 million from the brewery are frivolous, so he is countersuing it for $170,000.

Grant Babb, who was the general manager at Joyride until resigning in October, has been blamed by managing co-owner Dave Bergen of bankrupting the brewery through theft.

“This has nothing to do with Joyride’s ability to run a successful or profitable business but rather has everything to do with the improper and unauthorized spending, as well as financial mismanagement, of that former manager,” Bergen told customers in November.

That same day, Joyride filed for Chapter 11. Two weeks later, it sued Babb for theft.

Joyride alleges that Babb “wrote hundreds of thousands of dollars” in checks from Joyride to himself and his companies in 2022 and 2023; similarly “made hundreds of thousands of dollars” in Venmo and credit card payments to himself and his companies; and took out business loans...