Please E-mail suggested additions, comments and/or corrections to Kent@MoreLaw.Com.

Help support the publication of case reports on MoreLaw

Date: 09-04-2020

Case Style:

United States of America v. Jeffrey A. Styron

Case Number: 4:20-cr-00070-D

Judge: James C. Dever, III

Court: United States District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina (Wake County)

Plaintiff's Attorney: United States District Attorney’s Office

Defendant's Attorney:


Call 855-853-4800 for help finding a criminal defense lawyer in Raleigh or Greenville, North Carolina for a Lacey Act False Labeling charge.

Description:





Raleigh, NC - The United States of America charged Jeffrey A. Styron caused Garland F. Fulcher Seafood Company, Inc. of violating the Lacey Act by falsely label hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of foreign crabmeat as “Product of USA.”

According to information in the public record, Jeffrey A. Styron was the treasurer of the corporate board of officers for Garland Fulcher, a North Carolina company engaged in the business of purchasing, processing, packaging, transporting and selling seafood and seafood products, including crabmeat from domestically harvested blue crab.

As treasurer, Styron was responsible for overseeing the daily operations of the company’s crab-related business, which involved managing and directing employees of the company with respect to the processing, packaging, and labeling of crab meat. Styron pleaded guilty to a one-count information charging him with substituting foreign crabmeat for domestic blue crab and, as part of the plea, Styron admitted to falsely labeling crabmeat with a retail market value of at least $250,000 dollars, which was sold primarily to small seafood retailers and restaurants.

“Blue crabs are a classic American seafood product and a vital resource for coastal communities in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and other parts of the United States,” said Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Bossert Clark for the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This investigation is part of the department’s mission to work with our law enforcement partners in the protection of Atlantic blue crab populations and other marine resources.”

“Seafood mislabeling is consumer fraud that undermines efforts of hardworking, honest fisherman and the free market by devaluing the price of domestic seafood,” said U.S. Attorney Robert J. Higdon Jr. for the Eastern District of North Carolina. “In this case, the fraudulent scheme artificially deflated the cost of domestic blue crab and gave Styron and Garland Fulcher Seafood an unacceptable and unfair economic advantage over law-abiding competitors.”

“Seafood fraud undermines the economic viability of U.S. and global fisheries, deceives consumers, and threatens the health of those who consume tainted or misidentified seafood products,” said Chris Oliver, Assistant Administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service. “This case is a great example of investigative cooperation by state and federal law enforcement to strengthen seafood fraud detection and safeguard the industry and consumers.”

As part of his guilty plea, Styron admitted that he and his company could not and did not process sufficient quantities of domestic blue crab to meet customer demands. To make up the shortfall, Styron and his company used foreign crabmeat to fulfill customer orders. During the periods when the company did not have a sufficient supply of domestic crab, Styron and Garland Fulcher purchased crabmeat (not live crabs) from South America and Asia.

As part of the guilty plea, Styron further admitted that beginning at least as early as Jan. 1, 2014, and continuing through Dec. 31, 2017, he directed company employees to repack foreign crabmeat into containers labeled “Product of USA,” which Garland Fulcher then sold to customers as “backfin,” “claw,” “lump,” “jumbo lump,” or “special,” domestically-harvested blue crab meat.

Styron is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 7.

This case was part of an ongoing effort by NOAA’s Office of Law Enforcement, in coordination with the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Justice to detect, deter and prosecute those engaged in the false labeling of crabmeat.

This prosecution is being handled by the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s Environmental Crimes Section and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Senior Litigation Counsel Banumathi Rangarajan and Trial Attorney Gary N. Donner are prosecuting the case.

Outcome: 09/03/2020 10 Joint Factual Statement filed by USA as to Jeffrey A. Styron. (Stone, S.) (Entered: 09/03/2020)
09/03/2020 11 Waiver of Indictment filed in open court by Jeffrey A. Styron. (Stone, S.) (Entered: 09/03/2020)
09/03/2020 12 MEMORANDUM OF PLEA AGREEMENT as to Jeffrey A. Styron. (Stone, S.) (Entered: 09/03/2020)
09/03/2020 13 ORDER Setting Conditions of Release. Signed by District Judge James C. Dever, III on 9/3/2020. (Stone, S.) (Entered: 09/03/2020)
09/03/2020 14 Minute Entry for proceedings held before District Judge James C. Dever, III in Raleigh. Defendant present with counsel, Assistant U.S. Attorney present for government - Defendant sworn - Competent - Rule 11 Conducted. Arraignment as to Jeffrey A. Styron (1) regarding Count 1 held on 9/3/2020. Plea entered: Guilty as to Count 1 of the Criminal Information. Defendant entered waiver of Indictment. Memorandum of Plea Agreement conditionally approved by the court. Sentencing set for the 12/7/2020 term of court in Raleigh - 7th Floor - Courtroom 1 before District Judge James C. Dever III. Defendant ordered released on conditions. (Court Reporter Amy Condon) (Stone, S.) (Entered: 09/03/2020)

Plaintiff's Experts:

Defendant's Experts:

Comments:



Find a Lawyer

Subject:
City:
State:
 

Find a Case

Subject:
County:
State: