Four men involved in now-bankrupt Eastern Livestock LLC have pled guilty in Kentucky to a range of charges, including organized crime, theft and facilitating criminal activity. Owner Thomas Gibson, 71, and chief financial officer Steve McDonald, 59, pled guilty to charges of organized criminal activity and 172 acts of theft. Attorney General Jack Conway recommended a sentence of 10 years for both men. Thomas' son, Grant Gibson, 48, and accountant Darren Brangers, 43, pled guilty to facilitating Gibson's criminal syndicate and several thefts.
Grant and Brangers are expected to pay a total of more than $800,000 in restitution to 170 Kentucky ranchers, reports Kate Micik of DTN/Progressive Farmer. Conway spokeswoman Allison Martin "said that if Grant Gibson or Brangers don't pay the restitution or miss a payment, the state may seek five-year prison sentences for each," Micik writes. (AgWeb.com flow chart)
The guilty pleas are the latest in a case started in December 2010. Eastern Livestock was one of the largest cattle brokerages in the U.S. At the time it filed for bankruptcy, ranchers in more than 30 states were left holding about $130 million in bad checks from it. Kentucky ranchers are lucky, Micik reports, because whether or not ranchers in other states get paid back depends on the bankruptcy case, which has been "bogged down in litigation." National Cattlemen's Beef Association's Colin Woodall told Micik the guilty pleas will satisfy only one area of ranchers' discontent: "It's great they pled guilty, but where is the money and how can we get that returned to the producers who were going about their regular business and have been left high and dry?"
"All of this is complicated by Eastern Livestock's lack of records, false records and under-the-table deals," Micik reports. She adds that two questions from ranchers still remain: "Why didn't the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration notice Eastern's behavior and stop it, and what did Fifth Third Bank know and when did they know it?" The Cincinnati-based and was first to notice the company's suspicious financial activity. GIPSA's audit history of the company is thin, and Woodall said NCBA is seeking a congressional hearing about the agency's oversight. (Read more)
Grant and Brangers are expected to pay a total of more than $800,000 in restitution to 170 Kentucky ranchers, reports Kate Micik of DTN/Progressive Farmer. Conway spokeswoman Allison Martin "said that if Grant Gibson or Brangers don't pay the restitution or miss a payment, the state may seek five-year prison sentences for each," Micik writes. (AgWeb.com flow chart)
The guilty pleas are the latest in a case started in December 2010. Eastern Livestock was one of the largest cattle brokerages in the U.S. At the time it filed for bankruptcy, ranchers in more than 30 states were left holding about $130 million in bad checks from it. Kentucky ranchers are lucky, Micik reports, because whether or not ranchers in other states get paid back depends on the bankruptcy case, which has been "bogged down in litigation." National Cattlemen's Beef Association's Colin Woodall told Micik the guilty pleas will satisfy only one area of ranchers' discontent: "It's great they pled guilty, but where is the money and how can we get that returned to the producers who were going about their regular business and have been left high and dry?"
"All of this is complicated by Eastern Livestock's lack of records, false records and under-the-table deals," Micik reports. She adds that two questions from ranchers still remain: "Why didn't the Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration notice Eastern's behavior and stop it, and what did Fifth Third Bank know and when did they know it?" The Cincinnati-based and was first to notice the company's suspicious financial activity. GIPSA's audit history of the company is thin, and Woodall said NCBA is seeking a congressional hearing about the agency's oversight. (Read more)
No comments:
Post a Comment