A company affiliated with Wynkoop Brewing Co. and the Cherry Cricket is alleging that a former Denver International Airport executive took bribes and rigged the bidding process that awarded a major airport concession contract to a Michigan company over better qualified candidates.

The claims are laid out in a lawsuit filed in Denver District Court on Feb. 17 on behalf of DIA Brewing Co., one of four losing bidders on that contract process.

The suit names former DIA chief revenue officer Bhavesh Patel and Michigan-based Midfield Concession Enterprises Inc. among more than a dozen defendants. It alleged Patel manipulated the bidding process that awarded a 10-year contract on three restaurant spaces and one coffee shop space inside DIA so that Midfield would win. In exchange, the lawsuit alleges, two companies connected to Patel were included as beneficial owners in Midfield’s airport company, MCE-DIA.

“Instead of the plaintiff, who was the actual winner of the bid, being awarded the contract, the defendants conspired together to award to the contract to a different entity in a pay-to-play scandal,” the suit says. “That was done in exchange for a financial benefit to certain DIA officials or their relatives, friends or associates.”

The lawsuit was first reported by BusinessDen.

DIA Brewing is an affiliate of Breckenridge-Wynkoop, the company that owns Lower Downtown mainstay Wynkoop Brewing. Breckenridge-Wynkoop is headed by Lee Driscoll, a co-owner of the Cherry Cricket and former business partner of Gov. John Hickenlooper.

DIA Brewing was one of five companies, along with Midfield, that applied for the concession contract in September 2015, proposing to bring a Wynkoop Brewing Co., Cherry Cricket and Park Burger to DIA, along with a Peet’s Coffee and Tea. The bidding process was managed by Patel, the suit says.

The suit says Midfield’s proposals should have been tossed out for failing to meet the minimum requirements of the bid, which called for a “Colorado-themed microbrewery,” two “crafted gourmet burger restaurants” and a coffee shop. The request for proposals mandated the bidder also have at least eight years’ experience in the last 10 owning and running a full service brewpub with a minimum sales of $4 million per year over that time frame, the suit says.

Midfield’s pitch included plans for two Smashburger locations, a Roasting Plant coffee shop and a new brewpub concept, Tom’s Urban Kitchen & Brewery. Tom’s was only a concept at the time of the filing, blending two Denver establishments, Tom’s Urban Kitchen and Tivoli Brewing Co., the latter of which had only been active since late 2015 and did not have a full service kitchen or bar, the suit says. Smasburger was not a “full-service, sit-down gourmet burger restaurant ” as outlined in a the RFP, instead being widely regarded as a fast-casual restaurant chain.

The suit claims another DIA employee brought concerns about Midfield’s lack of qualifications to Patel who overruled them. It further alleges, a seven-person scoring committee that reviewed the bids deemed DIA Brewing the most qualified, but scorecards they filled out were destroyed at Patel’s direction. The scorecards would have persuaded DIA CEO Kim Day to recommend the contract be awarded to DIA Brewing, not Midfield, the suit claims.

Day and DIA aren’t defendants in the suit. Airport officials say the coffee shop and one Smashburger are now open there.

City Council members raised concerns that Midfield did not appear to meet all the requirements of the bid when considering the contract in March 2016, but members’ concerns were eased after discussions with DIA officials and Midfield was awarded the contract anyway.

The suit based its accusations “upon information and belief.” DIA Brewing was first made aware of the alleged conspiracy between Patel and Midfield in February 2016 from “one of the persons who attended the meeting between Bhavesh Patel, Schaden and others.”

Patel, now a vice president with Chicago-based Unison Consulting, did not return repeated calls seeking comment Tuesday, nor did officials with Midfield.

The suit is seeking punitive damages in the case.