Report: Amish Acres Owner Has Used 15 Aliases; Has “Laundry List” Of Prior Charges & Convictions

Amish Acres sign beside a white fence and green pasture, with the red Round Barn Theatre in the background in Nappanee, Indiana — Police say the owner of Amish Acres in Nappanee, Indiana has used at least 15 aliases, as customers and vendors raise complaints about his business dealings. The Round Barn Theatre at Amish Acres, pictured in 2005. Image credit: Derek Jensen/Wikimedia

We’ve been following the story of Amish Acres, in Nappanee, Indiana, and its repeatedly delayed full re-opening, for some time now. The latest stage saw the property being purchased by a man named Brad Juneau, who took it over in October 2025, pledging to return it to something like its previous form.

But a full reopening was delayed multiple times for various reasons, and last month the state of Indiana temporarily shut the business down, over what Juneau later described as a “paperwork error.”

Now, scrutiny has begun to gather on Juneau as customers and vendors point fingers at the property’s current owner. ABC57 has done a multi-sourced report on Juneau and his business dealings (“‘Are you a con man?’ Amish Acres’ newest owner faces community backlash“), revealing some eyebrow-raising findings and allegations.

For one, police say Juneau has used at least 15 aliases in multiple states. According to ABC57, his real name is Michael Bradley Loftin, and the station reports a number of charges and convictions under various names.

Additionally, Juneau has been operating the business on a smaller scale in lieu of a full re-open – holding events on the property, like weddings (in the prior “paperwork error” post, you could see a sign for “Ceremony”).

But that hasn’t been running smoothly, according to customers and vendors, who allege a double-booked wedding and money issues including an unpaid bill and unreturned funds.

Charges & Convictions Under Various Aliases

The report describes a number of past charges & lawsuits Juneau has faced in different states:

Juneau has a laundry list of prior charges and convictions under different names for issuing worthless checks, with charges going back to the early 2000s.

In 2012 in Georgia, he was sued under the name Michael Brad Loftin Juneau for $50,000. In 2019, he pleaded guilty to multiple charges, under the name Michael Loftin, for issuing worthless checks over a decade ago in Louisiana.

In 2025, he was sued for more than $7,000 for breach of contract with a car rental company in Louisiana because he never made the proper payments.

It seems there is a pattern there. There are a couple of other notable details in the piece, though they are not really explained. Police also told ABC57 that when they tried to confront Juneau about an out-of-state warrant, he fled into the woods. Juneau denied the police account. Additionally, police said the U-Haul Juneau drove when he moved to the area was stolen.

There isn’t anything else on that besides that single line. It puzzled me a bit as, if they knew it was stolen, you wonder why some action wasn’t taken on it. Perhaps there was a lack of evidence; hard to say based on this. Ditto for the confrontation on the out-of-state warrant. So this part of the article leaves you wondering a bit, though the police do give a clue as to why they haven’t been able to take action (more on that below).

Weddings Gone Wrong & Money Disputes

The account of the wedding-related problems sounds like a multi-layered mess; I recommend reading the source article for the whole story (there’s also a good video report with it adding even more detail and visuals).

But in a nutshell, Brandon and Melissa Squibb had booked their July 11 wedding at Amish Acres under the previous ownership. Melissa Squibb says Juneau agreed to honor it; she says he then overcharged her $180 on the final balance and never returned it.

About a week out, Juneau texted that flooding might force a move – and it emerged that a second couple had been booked for the same day. The Squibbs found a new venue four days before the wedding, and now want all of their money back. Something tells me that’s going to be a challenge.

Wedding photographer Andi Swanson says she offered Juneau her help for a fee he agreed to, but was never paid, and never signed on as an employee. That didn’t stop a couple planning an August wedding at the property from calling her as though she were his wedding coordinator.

According to ABC57, Amish Acres was shut down days before that August wedding, and as a result, “a third wedding had now been ruined.”

Hand-lettered "Ceremony" sign in the foreground, with the Restaurant Barn and Craft Barn at Amish Acres in Nappanee, Indiana behind it — A photo filed with the state’s inspection records on August 11, the day Amish Acres in Nappanee, Indiana was shut down, shows a “Ceremony” sign set up in front of the Restaurant Barn. Image: Indiana Department of Homeland Security

There’s another business person who has an issue with Juneau. Jimmy Le, owner of Foam Party City, said Juneau hired him for a foam party at Amish Acres on August 1.

Le said he was paid with a check bearing the name Michael Loftin. He said he worked the event and cashed the check, but the money never reached his account; an overnight replacement check Juneau promised never arrived.

Reading these accounts, it’s rather hard to tell what might be due to negligence, disorganization, or bad intentions. Swanson had this to say:

“There are things that I see that I’m like, ‘He’s a bad guy.’ Other parts I’m like, ‘He’s just really dumb,’” said Swanson. “I said, ‘Brad, are you a con man or are you just stupid?'”

Juneau’s Response & What Police Are Saying

Juneau told ABC57 the reopening has been held up by staffing and by problems that kept coming up, and acknowledged “some false starts.”

On the double-booking, he said he believed he had been communicating with one bride for months, when in fact he had been communicating with two. He said the Squibbs’ wedding was booked before he arrived and was not entered in his calendar properly.

“We know how important those are. Those are life events. We never would want anyone to have a negative experience here at Amish Acres,” said Juneau.

He said the business has since hired a wedding coordinator. Swanson says that’s not the case; she apparently has been called twice by people who think she’s in charge of coordinating Juneau’s wedding events.

Amish Acres owner Brad Juneau, in a red shirt and white cap and holding a clipboard, talks with ABC57 reporter Annie Kate in front of a red barn — Amish Acres owner Brad Juneau speaks with ABC57’s Annie Kate during an event held at the property in late July 2026.

No criminal charges have been filed over the local complaints so far, and police say they are limited in what they can do for now:

Nappanee Police confirmed they are hearing the same complaints as ABC57, but until they can come forward with solid criminal charges, they remain hampered by what appears to be many civil cases against Juneau.

Nappanee Police told the station they want to hear from anyone who believes Juneau took their money.

It’s Not Looking Great For The “Amish Acres Of Old”

All in all this sounds like a big mess. And seeing this report, those who may have given Juneau the benefit of the doubt in the past for hiccups and delays in opening are probably not going to be doing so much longer.

When I covered this last time, after the state found no violations following the “paperwork error,” I wrote that it looked like things “may be back on the right track.” It doesn’t look that way anymore. I’m skeptical that this business will in fact return to something like the “Amish Acres of old,” at least not under the current ownership.

And that’s a shame, given how many enjoyed it over the decades of its existence under the ownership of the Pletcher family. I imagine we’ll be hearing more soon enough.