Easterday Reports To Prison; Sues Tyson

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The legal tussle between Tyson Foods and Cody Easterday is not complete, even as Easterday reported to federal prison last week to begin his 11-year sentence.

Easterday, who pleaded guilty to a $244 million “ghost cattle” scheme that unraveled in late 2020 and drug his family’s businesses into bankruptcy, is now suing Tyson over its alleged failure to comply with a separate beef branding deal. Easterday claims a personal branding agreement allowed Tyson to sell premium “Cody’s Beef” products to Nippon Ham in Japan in a marketing program that ran between 2015 and 2020.

The Spokane Spokesman-Review reports that as Easterday reported to the Federal Correctional Institute Lompoc in California, his lawyers have sued Tyson for breach of contract and they continue to fight the $244 million in restitution Easterday was ordered to pay.

That suit is separate from the Easterday Farms and Ranches bankruptcy case, which was recently concluded. The Spokesman-Review reports a final tally for lawyer’s fees was approved for the bankruptcy case at $14.75 million.

Related stories:

Easterday Pleads Guilty To Defrauding Tyson

DOJ Recommends 10-Year Sentence for Easterday

 

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