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A former govt of Oakes Farms is accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of {dollars} from the corporate to help a lavish life-style.
The accusations are on the root of a civil lawsuit filed in Collier Circuit Court on Oct. 31.
In the go well with, Oakes Farms alleges that Steven Veneziano Jr. used his place of energy within the firm to “steal millions of dollars in funds, equipment and assets.”
The high-profile firm, headquartered in Collier County, claims Veneziano engaged in varied fraudulent schemes to “fund his lavish lifestyle, which included high-dollar gambling, regular trips to Las Vegas, a multimillion-dollar house, and the purchase of a Lamborghini, among other luxuries.”
According to the lawsuit, Veneziano started working for Oakes Farms in 2013, and he rose by way of the ranks, successfully functioning as its CEO and president by 2020.
Until he left the corporate in November of final 12 months, he additionally served in management roles with two of its associates, Oakes Farm Op and South Florida Produce, that are additionally named plaintiffs within the go well with.
Founded and owned by Alfie Oakes, Oakes Farms is a diversified agricultural firm. Operations embody farming, packing and distributing contemporary produce and seafood, and working natural eating places and cafes, and farmer’s market-style grocery shops. The flagship Seed to Table grocery retailer in North Naples is a well-liked draw for county residents and guests, with a number of eateries and bars and common leisure.
Oakes Farm Op is concerned within the farming and packing of contemporary produce, whereas South Florida Produce is a wholesale produce distributor.
In a textual content message, Oakes referred inquiries to his legal professional.
In an electronic mail, his legal professional Joseph Davidow declined to reply a listing of questions, citing pending litigation.
“The complaint was drafted to lay out, in significant detail, the fraud committed against the company,” he mentioned. “The fraud and breach of trust came as a shock to the company when it was discovered. The company looks forward to proceeding with the case, recovering its damages, and putting this episode behind it as it continues to focus on its goal of serving the Southwest Florida community.”
More about what’s within the lawsuit
The 21-page lawsuit in opposition to Veneziano alleges that he created “various shell companies,” together with Veneziano Farms LLC and Veneziano Property Management, to switch Oakes Farms’ cash, belongings and tools on to himself, or “other entities that were also being used to further perpetrate fraud.”
The go well with describes a few of Veneziano’s schemes as subtle and inventive, saying he interfered with Oakes Farms’ accounting and supply information to hide fraudulent transfers, making them seem to be “legitimate transactions.”
Veneziano can also be accused of stealing funds and belongings from Oakes Farms and its associates in a extra direct method, together with:
- Purchasing a Lincoln Navigator for private use
- Paying for greater than “half of million dollars of personal expenses” with an organization bank card
- Creating a cryptocurrency mining operation for his private profit
- Adding his spouse and a good friend to the corporate payroll
According to the lawsuit, Veneziano improperly paid himself $1.15 million from 2022 to 2024 and embezzled “at least another $6.2 million” from Oakes Farms Op earlier than the fraud got here to mild, and put a lot of that cash into cryptocurrency.
The go well with consists of examples of alleged manipulations of planning software program and accounting information, together with invoices. One of these examples entails the sale of $1.8 million price of produce from Oakes Farm Op to Valencia Produce, a wholesale produce provider in Atlanta, Georgia, with Veneziano accused of asking for fee in money, then pocketing the cash.
Veneziano is accused of myriad different calculated schemes, together with:
- Diverting company-purchased produce to native retailers and holding the money from these gross sales for himself.
- Withdrawing money for produce purchases that went to himself, as a substitute of distributors.
- Transferring hundreds of thousands of {dollars} of firm cash into his private or enterprise accounts, portraying them as investments or reimbursements.
- Selling firm tractors with out authorization and holding the income.
Claims within the go well with embody fraud, conversion, breach of fiduciary obligation and unjust enrichment.
Oakes Farms seeks the creation of a constructive belief to get better belongings that had been wrongfully obtained, or the imposition of a lien over the belongings, to make sure restitution and forestall unjust enrichment.
Veneziano defends himself in opposition to the lawsuit
In an electronic mail, Nicole Hughes Waid, a Fort Myers legal professional who represents Veneziano, described the lawsuit as frivolous, saying she and her consumer are assured that “the facts” will clear him of the allegations made by Oakes Farms within the civil motion.
“We will not engage in bullying tactics or theatrics; we will rely on the facts and evidence,” she mentioned.
Separately, Veneziano is wrapped up in a federal case involving the attainment of hundreds of thousands in federal COVID-19 reduction funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture by way of fraudulent functions for assist from a Coronavirus Food Assistance Program.
The help program was designed to assist farmers and ranchers offset pandemic losses. In August of this 12 months, Veneziano pleaded responsible to 2 felony counts, admitting that he participated in a conspiracy to commit wire fraud and cash laundering, from 2020 to 2022.
With the plea settlement, he waived his proper to be charged by means of indictment earlier than a federal grand jury. He agreed to pay restitution to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and to surrender or repay the greater than $1.15 million in ill-gotten proceeds he admitted to acquiring.
For the cash that might not be recovered, Veneziano agreed to surrender a few of his belongings, together with his actual property property in Naples.
According to court docket information, the USDA doled out greater than $6 million to corporations and people concerned within the conspiracy, together with $1 million to Veneziano’s personal firm, Veneziano Farms LLC. He additionally personally obtained greater than $157,000 in funds from others he helped to fraudulently apply for the funds.
Neither Oakes Farms, nor Alfie Oakes, have been charged within the conspiracy. Last November, federal agents raided his home in North Naples and his packing plant in Immokalee, however they did not say why.
Court information present the COVID-relief conspiracy concerned candidates falsifying crop possession, crop dimension and kinds and crop manufacturing and gross sales figures, in addition to faking enterprise and monetary information, together with invoices and checks.
Veneziano is amongst a handful of defendants who’ve pleaded responsible. He faces as much as 20 years in jail on every felony depend and fines of as much as $750,000.
With his cooperation within the ongoing investigation, nonetheless, Veneziano hopes to obtain a lighter sentence, however it’s not assured.
“Mr. Veneziano pled guilty to certain federal crimes and accepted responsibility for his actions,” Waid mentioned. “As court filings make clear, Mr. Veneziano did not act alone, and he is and has been cooperating fully with the United States government to ensure that all individuals who defrauded the federal government are held accountable. We are confident that the full truth will be revealed.”
His sentencing in federal court docket is scheduled for March 23, 2026 in Fort Myers.
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https://www.marconews.com/story/news/local/2025/11/16/ex-oakes-farms-employee-with-lavish-lifestyle-accused-of-theft/87252422007/
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