A popular Hilton Head chef is being sued for $45,000 in property damage to rental home

A well-known Hilton Head Island chef and his wife are being sued by their former landlords, who claim the couple caused $45,000 in damage to the home they were leasing before leaving without paying rent the last two months.

The home — owned by James and Abby Barger, of West Chester, Penn. — was leased to “Alfonse Francis Lucier,” who is listed in mortgage documents and online records as Alphonse Francis Lucier, and Heather Minnich from July 2008 through October 2017.

Lucier is better known on Hilton Head as Lee Lucier, a popular chef and restaurant co-owner. He was featured on the Food Network show “Dinner: Impossible” and also “Restaurant: Impossible,” which he also produced.

The landlords returned to their Audubon Place property on Nov. 22, 2017 to find missing kitchen cabinets and fixtures, as well as a missing security system, according to the lawsuit, which was filed Jan. 19, in the Beaufort County Court of Common Pleas.

The landlords also found ripped-out flooring, door frames and baseboards, “substantial” holes in the walls, exposed wiring, missing closet doors and damage to all the bathrooms, according to the lawsuit. Outside of the home, the suit claims, they found trash and debris strewn about, as well as scrap wood.

According to the lawsuit, Lucier and Minnich did not pay rent for the last two months that they lived in the Hilton Head home. In the lawsuit, the Bargers are asking for $50,575 to pay for damage, rent, late fees and legal fees.

There are more than 100 pictures documenting damage to the property, the suit claims.

“Mr. and Mrs. Barger stand by the allegations in the complaint and we look forward to the adjudication of the claims,” said the Bargers’ attorney, Jannine M. Mutterer, in a statement on their behalf. “However, as this matter is still pending, neither the Bargers nor my office has any further comment.”

“I spent over eight years in my former landlord’s property and now he blind-sides me with a frivolous lawsuit that we (look) forward to resolving quickly,” said Lucier in an email to The Packet Wednesday evening.

Attempts by The Island Packet to contact Minnich through Facebook messenger, by email, and at three phone numbers found through online search, were not successful.

This story was originally published February 14, 2018 at 3:39 PM with the headline "A popular Hilton Head chef is being sued for $45,000 in property damage to rental home."