(VeroBlue) Fish fraud allegations surface after hatchery goes belly-up
Evidently VeroBlue is in a tonne of debt.
https://www.kcci.com/article/fish-fraud-allegations-surface-after-hatchery-goes-belly-up/27350638 WEBSTER CITY, Iowa (KCCI) — A massive industrial fish farm in the middle of landlocked Iowa is drowning in almost $100 million of debt after declaring bankruptcy last year. The story gets fishier: Court bankruptcy documents outline how Webster City-based VeroBlue Farms ended up in a sea of debt, and records from a civil lawsuit indicate that company founders spent money on personal items.
That includes $107,000 toward construction of a vacation home in Texas; $400,000 a year in salary; personal travel to Canada and across the United States; purchase of a 22-car fleet -- some for personal use -- and six tractor-trailers the company never used.
“I knew something was up because they never reached full production of what they had indicated,” Hamilton County Supervisor Doug Bailey said.
The indoor fish farming operation now sits barren.
“There was a lot of hope riding on those white pickups with a blue logo on them running around,” Bailey said.
Those who lost money in VeroBlue include investors in surrounding Hamilton County, business owners throughout Iowa and companies across the country.