Eatery closed, equipment moved as owner awaits sentencing

CANTON — The Jamaican restaurant at 59 Miner St. is closed as the owner awaits his Feb. 8 sentencing for selling cocaine at the eatery.

Kitchen equipment and other items were removed from Leonie's Jamaican Cuisine and loaded into a U-Haul moving truck that was parked in front of the restaurant Saturday.

The building's owner, Henry R. "Hank" Ford, said Monday three separate people are interested in renting the space to open a new business.

Two of those involve selling food, while Mr. Ford declined to disclose the nature of the third potential business.

The location of the 1,200-square-foot building is desirable for commerce, he said.

"It's been a good, productive location over the years," Mr. Ford said. "There's plenty of parking and it's within walking distance of St. Lawrence University."

He said renovations will be made to the building, and he hopes to have it rented to a new tenant by March.

In the past, the building has housed Chicken Out, which sold chicken wings, a T-shirt print shop and Cindy's Cake Shop. The Jamaican restaurant has been located there since 2006.

The Jamaican restaurant's owner, Ainsley N. "Matthew" Edwards, 26, of 55 Sweeney Road, Potsdam, pleaded guilty Dec. 22 to second-degree criminal sale of a controlled substance, an A-2 felony.

As part of a plea deal, Mr. Edwards is expected to be sentenced Feb. 8 in St. Lawrence County Court to four years in state prison and five years of post-release supervision. He's being held in county jail without bail.

Mr. Edwards admitted to selling about 3 ounces of cocaine May 1 to a female confidential informant for $5,100. The plea also covered an uncharged drug sale from late April.