LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- Oswego, Kansas, cattle trader John Rife has been banned for life from trading and fined nearly $270,000 for repeated violations of the Packers and Stockyards Act dating back to 2008, according to a default judgment entered by the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas.
The lifetime ban comes as a result of breaching prior injunctive orders entered by the court, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
According to the default judgment entered by the court in April, Rife did not defend the charges after entering a request for an extension with the court to respond by January 2021. The ban could be lifted, however, if Rife pays all penalties and completes registering and bonding.
Rife is alleged to have been operating as a cattle dealer and engaging in transactions on a suspended registration.
He was charged with operating without an adequate bond; failing to maintain records and make records available to the federal inspectors; and violating the court's prior 2012 and 2017 orders imposing penalties and injunctive relief against Rife for similar conduct.
The court ordered Rife to pay 15% of about $1.8 million in new and reinstated penalties, totaling nearly $270,000. If further violations are committed or the fine is not paid, according to the judgment, Rife would be ordered to pay the full amount of fines.
"During a hearing on the matter, the United States argued that Rife's operation as a cattle dealer and market agency without registering, bonding, or maintaining records potentially jeopardizes the financial integrity of the cattle markets," the DOJ said in a news release.
"The United States also contended Rife's failure to comply with federal law impairs the government's ability to investigate and prevent the spread of disease."
According to the default judgment Rife "knowingly violated" the law and consent decrees from 2008, 2012 and 2017 by engaging in 53 separate cattle transactions without being registered or bonded.
Those transactions, according to the judgment, were made on behalf of Peck Bros. Cattle Order Buying, based in Erie, Kansas.
"Peck paid the stockyards directly for all purchases made by Rife under Peck's name and then sold the majority of the cattle back to Rife," according to the judgment.
Rife reportedly violated the 2017 consent decree when he "failed to maintain required records and make required records available upon request," according to the judgment. "Rife also directed the stockyards to deduct unwarranted and excessive hauling charges as a line item from the gross sales invoices and remitted checks, often exceeding 50% of the gross sales proceeds," the court said.
According to the default judgment the DOJ provided evidence of an additional 25 violations of the Packers and Stockyard Act allegedly committed by Rife but an increase in penalties was not requested.
Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com
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