A federal grand jury in Yakima, Washington, returned an indictment accusing a woman from Washington and her since-closed business of producing and selling tainted fruit juice while misleading consumers about the products’ contamination.
According to the indictment, Valley Processing Inc. (VPI), a company owned by Mary Ann Bliesner, 80, of Sunnyside, Washington, and other parties planned to sell contaminated and potentially dangerous apple and grape juice concentrate to consumers both domestically and abroad.
According to the indictment, Bliesner’s juice products were manufactured between October 2012 and June 2019 in unhygienic conditions and contained high concentrations of contaminants, like arsenic, that could be harmful.
The indictment also claims that Bliesner, the company’s former president and sole owner, and VPI misled clients about the age and calibre of their goods. According to the indictment, the defendants in some cases sold juice products after keeping them outside and exposed to the elements for years.
The indictment claims that at least a few of those goods were later sold to clients who supplied the National School Lunch Program, which gives kids free or inexpensive lunches.
Additionally, it is alleged in the indictment that Bliesner and VPI misled FDA inspectors regarding the presence and usage of two facilities that they used to keep fruit juice goods in addition to failing to register them.
The United States filed a legal case in federal court in November 2020 asking for an injunction prohibiting Bliesner and VPI from making, keeping, or selling juice or juice-related items.
In January 2021, Bliesner and VPI agreed to a consent injunction in which Bliesner and VPI promised that they were no longer processing, manufacturing, preparing, packing, holding or distributing any type of food, and would not do so in the future without first notifying and receiving approval from the FDA. VPI eventually shut down.
Twelve felony counts of fraud, conspiracy, making false claims, and breaking the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act are included in the criminal indictment that was issued today against Bliesner.
Before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alex Ekstrom of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, the defendant is due to make her first court appearance on October 5.
If convicted, she faces a maximum term of 20 years in jail. After taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other legal considerations, a federal district court judge will decide on any punishment.
The matter was looked into by the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney James J. Hennelly, Senior Trial Attorney David Gunn, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Dan Fruchter and Tyler H.L. Tornabene for the Western District of Washington in the Justice Department’s Civil Division’s Consumer Protection Branch.