North Carolina bar continues to sell Sycamore beer, but condemns child rape allegations against co-owner

CHAPEL HILL, NC (WBTV) – A North Carolina bar announced it will continue selling Sycamore beer after allegations that the brewery’s co-owner raped a child in Stanly County last week.

Goodfellows, a bar in Chapel Hill, said in a social media post Saturday (Dec. 13) that it plans to keep beer on tap to support brewery workers, while condemning the allegations against Sycamore ownership.

“Instead of abandoning the beer and the brewery and penalizing the hard-working innocent people who depend on the brewery for their livelihood, we will continue to work with Sycamore in the future,” the bar wrote.

Many bars and grocery stores in North Carolina have removed Sycamore beer from their shelves following these allegations. Goodfellows, however, said it will donate a portion of future Sycamore beer sales to the Orange County Rape Crisis Center.

“We believe this is the fairest path,” the bar wrote.

Sycamore co-owner arrested and charged with child rape

Court records showed Justin Brigham, 44, co-owner of Sycamore Brewing, was issued a $10 million bond and charged with rape of a minor, first-degree burglary and indecent assault with a child.

According to arrest warrants, Brigham was accused of breaking into a home along Furr Road in Stanfield on Wednesday, Dec. 10, before raping a 13-year-old girl inside the residence.

Brigham’s wife issues statement

Brigham’s wife, Sarah, is the other owner of the brewery.

Just hours after Brigham’s accusations were made public, she posted a statement on Sycamore Brewing’s Instagram page. This can be read in full below.

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