[andrewstuart]

All your conclusions are wrong.

He wasn't asking too much money.

He wasn't overqualified.

He took the job and did programming.

Why you assume lead architect means not programming is not something I know.

I didn't pull strings to get him promoted.

But all your conclusions illustrate why technical recruiting is so broken - no-one ever has any problem justifying outcomes after the fact and making up stories to match their own reality.