HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Dave Leong, owner of Hawaii’s beloved Dave’s Ice Cream, is sharing his story of financial devastation after he said his trusted bookkeeper embezzled from his accounts and saddled him with massive tax problems.

“It wiped me out,” Leong said, two years after the near-financial ruin that forced him to take out an $800,000 debt against his home to pay taxes and penalties.

The embezzlement came to light in 2024 when Leong was hit with a tax lien demanding over $1 million. The bookkeeper, hired in 2019, had been steadily stealing from the business while failing to pay employee payroll taxes, according to Leong.

Financial devastation during pandemic recovery

The theft came at a particularly vulnerable time for Leong, who was navigating his ice cream business through

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