The video above aired in April 2024.

EAST HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) — The owner of a popular restaurant chain was arrested on a felony larceny charge, according to an arrest warrant obtained by News 8.

Gjinovefa "Gina" Luari, 33, who owns the restaurants "The Place 2 Be" with one location in West Hartford, two locations in Hartford and one in New Haven, allegedly wrote fraudulent checks to a restaurant equipment business. The Springfield, Mass., location was shut down in 2024 during the eviction process.

According to the arrest warrant by East Hartford police, a complaint about Luari was filed in July by Richard Singer, the manager of Restaurant Equipment Paradise on Park Avenue in East Hartford.

He said that Luari, who was a common customer of his, wrote out two checks to his company: on

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