An Ohio realtor is facing intense online backlash after allegedly leaving a harsh note instead of a tip for a server at a Columbus restaurant.
The incident occurred at Cazuelas Mexican Restaurant & Cantina and gained widespread attention when a restaurant employee shared a photo of the receipt on social media.
Online users quickly identified the customer as Stephanie Lovins, a 49-year-old former realtor from Blacklick, Ohio.
Lovins was previously linked to Century 21, but her profile has since been removed from the company’s website. Her voicemail no longer mentions the affiliation, and reports indicate that her cell phone has been disconnected amid the controversy.
Attempts to reach Lovins and her husband, who co-owns an electrical business, have gone unanswered.
A Century 21 spokesperson addressed the situation, stating: “We are aware of the incident involving the agent in question. Hate has no place within the CENTURY 21 brand, and we take this matter very seriously.
“After conducting an investigation and consulting with the respective broker—since all Century 21-affiliated companies are independently owned and operated—we can confirm that this agent is no longer associated with our brand.”
The company further clarified that Lovins had not been affiliated with the brokerage since earlier in the year, well before this controversy arose.
Lovins has since deleted her social media accounts, but alleged comments linked to her continue to circulate online.
In one reported Facebook post, she claimed: “My credit card was lost/stolen, and someone attempted to use it. Thanks for the notifications! This has been reported through my bank.”
A similar message appeared on LinkedIn, where she allegedly wrote: “Thank you for all the recent notifications of scammers and profile hackers! I recently discovered a lost/missing credit card and an attempted use/purchase. I appreciate your patience while I manage the situation.”
Despite Lovins’ claims, restaurant employees insist that witnesses identified her as the person who wrote the offensive note.
The receipt, dated Sunday, showed that the woman left no tip, instead writing: “ZERO, YOU SUCK” in the tip section and adding: “I HOPE TRUMP DEPORTS YOU!!!”
Cazuelas’ head of marketing, Fabio Oribo, spoke to local news outlet WCMH, explaining, “Apparently, this lady came in, and Ricardo, who is a great person, was taking care of her. He only works one day a week, which is Sunday. He has two jobs. From what I hear, she wasn’t happy about a coupon or something like that.”
Oribo continued, “It’s just not right. He’s a really good person, and we all come here every day to do our job—serve people and create a good experience.”
In response to the incident, a GoFundMe was launched to support Ricardo, the server involved.
The campaign initially set a goal of $1,000, but it has since surpassed $39,000 in donations.
Anna Overman, the fundraiser’s organizer, described Ricardo as a hardworking employee who was simply doing his job when he was met with the hateful message.
She encouraged the community to “drown out hate with love” by contributing and showing their support.
Meanwhile, Lovins’ husband, Donnie Lovins, also found himself under online scrutiny.
By Wednesday morning, his Facebook account—previously featuring a photo of him and his wife—had been locked down.
His business, Rite Way Electric in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, was mistakenly linked to a different company of the same name in South Carolina, leading to confusion and backlash for South Carolina business owner Jeff Costa.
Addressing the mix-up, Costa wrote in a social media post:
“If you are coming to this site to express your distaste for a person in Ohio, it is not me. This company is located in South Carolina, and I am the owner and only employee. The person you are looking for has linked my page to his. I will be working on resolving the issue.”
He later updated his post, thanking those who removed their comments after realizing his business was not involved in the Ohio controversy.
Speaking to DailyMail.com, Costa said he had been trying to contact both Donnie Lovins and Facebook to correct the mistaken identity.
Reflecting on the sudden surge of attention, Costa explained:
“It used to be a side business of mine, and I’ve just kept the site up, just in case I ever go back into it. I haven’t posted anything since 2013, and then all of a sudden, I see all this activity.”
While he found the situation “kind of humorous,” he admitted that if his business were fully operational, the mix-up could have caused serious disruptions.
