Jared, the Subway guy, at Daytona Saturday, in trouble Tuesday
Sandwich spokesman 'suspended' by the restaurant chain.
Photo by: Motorsport.com / ASP Inc.
Jared Fogle, the Subway guy, was at Daytona International Speedway Saturday, promoting -- as he usually does -- Subway's sponsorship of races like the Subway Firecracker 250 NASCAR Xfinity race, won by Austin Dillon.
Tuesday, Fogle was apparently out of a job, after being investigated by authorities in Indiana, where agents confiscated computers from his home.
In a statement posted on its Facebook page: "Subway and Jared Fogle have mutually agreed to suspend their relationship due to the current investigation. Jared continues to cooperate with authorities and he expects no actions to be forthcoming. Both Jared and Subway agree that this was the appropriate step to take.
"We are shocked about the news and believe it is related to prior investigation of a former Jared Foundation employee. We are very concerned and will be monitoring the situation closely. We don’t have any more details at this point." That employee is 43-year-old Russell Taylor, the executive director of The Jared Foundation, who was arrested in Indianapolis on federal child pornography charges.
The non-profit foundation deals with childhood obesity. According to Indianapolis Fox affiliate WXIN, Taylor attempted suicide in jail, and was placed on life support in the hospital last May. Said the station: "Taylor was charged in federal court Monday with seven counts of production of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography. Police are also looking into claims Taylor was involved with bestiality."
Long relationship over?
Fogle's relationship with Subway dates back to 1999, after a newspaper ran a story about how he lost weight -- his waist once measured 62 inches -- by eating Subway sandwiches. The company began a regional ad campaign that first aired on January 1, 2000.
Wikipedia suggests that Subway attributes as much as half its growth to the Jared campaign. The website says Fogel, the 6-foot, 2-inch, 200-pound spokesman, is worth $15 million and has "a black card for free food at Subway restaurants."
No longer, we suspect.
Subway is not listed as a sponsor for any more NASCAR races in the top three divisions for the rest of 2015.
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