ORLANDO-Hoping a name change will erase the public's memory of Mid-Florida Freezer Warehouses Ltd.'s Federal conviction in a 30-year tainted juice scheme, Chesapeake Logistics Inc. of Tampa, FL is buying the assets of the Port Canaveral, FL firm for $31 million. Port Canaveral is 60 miles east of Downtown.
The Tampa firm is in its due diligence period prior to an expected year-end closing on the deal. Chesapeake owner Greg Hughes has a $100,000 deposit riding on the transaction.
Patrick T. Lee, managing partner of Mid-Florida Freezer, is negotiating the contract with Chesapeaker. Lee faces up to 10 years in prison for participating in the scheme to defraud the US Customs Service by concealing and later selling contaminated fruit juices.
Employees testified at the June trial in Orlando that management had ordered them to repair damaged juice drums and refill the containers with contaminated juice to reduce spoilage accounting figures. However, the government could not show what public health damage, if any, occurred from the contaminated juices.
Mid-Florida Freezer, as a corporate defendant, was sentenced to three years probation; ordered to make a $1.5 million payment in lieu of forfeiting the company; and a $50,000 fine. Federal prosecutors had sought a larger fine and monetary settlement.
Lee, the former mayor of Cape Canaveral, personally guaranteed the $1.5 million payment. He was making $225,000 a year at Mid-Florida Freezer
Jeffrey Allen,a warehouse manager, received a 30-month prison sentence and a $6,000 fine for his part in the scam.
Want to continue reading?
Become a Free ALM Digital Reader.
Once you are an ALM Digital Member, you’ll receive:
- Breaking commercial real estate news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
- Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
- Critical coverage of the property casualty insurance and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, PropertyCasualty360 and ThinkAdvisor
Already have an account? Sign In Now
*May exclude premium content© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
