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Feds call $20 million in meat Agridime’s most valuable asset

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Feds call  million in meat Agridime’s most valuable asset


BISMARCK — A federal agency says a defunct cattle company has about $15 million to $20 million worth of meat to sell while owing $191 million to investors, including $40 million in North Dakota.

The Securities and Exchange Commission updated the Agridime website this week with information on the case that the agency has labeled as a Ponzi scheme.

“We currently estimate that Agridime’s inventory of meat is the company’s single most valuable asset,” the Feb. 27 update says.

It says meat is being sold through a new retail website AmericanGrazedBeef.com.

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“Agridime’s retail meat sales had to be halted when credit card companies no longer wanted to work with Agridime due to the federal court case, which caused a six-week hiatus in our retail operations as we worked to put a new organization and website in place,” the update says.

It notes two farms in Kansas, Morgan Creek Farms and Goracke Farms, as raising the company’s cattle.

The update says investigators are still examining Agridime’s financial records and identifying assets, including livestock. It says the company has about 6,500 head of cattle.

A complaint by the Securities and Exchange Commission alleges that Agridime raised at least $191 million from more than 2,100 investors in at least 15 states. The complaint, which was unsealed in December, says Agridime began using money from new investors to pay off previous investors, fitting the definition of a Ponzi scheme.

The complaint said Agridime sold contracts to investors promising returns of up to 32%. Agridime said investors could reap the benefits of investing in cattle without doing any work.

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About $40 million, more than 20%, of the investments came from North Dakota, according to the state’s Securities Department.

A sales agent for Agridime, Taylor Bang, based in Killdeer in western North Dakota, collected more than $6 million in Agridime commissions selling unsecured investments, the Securities Department said.

North Dakota and Arizona issued a cease-and-desist order and the Securities and Exchange Commission launched an investigation.

The company was incorporated in Texas in 2017, led by Jed Wood of Texas and Josh Link of Arizona.

The complaint said from Dec. 1, 2022, to Sept. 30, 2023, Agridime began using money from new investors — at least $58 million — to pay off previous investors instead of investing in cattle and raising them.

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The SEC update says there are no hearings scheduled in the case, but on Feb. 23, U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman issued an order requiring attorneys for the parties to meet “as soon as practicable” for a scheduling conference. It also requested a report from attorneys in the case, due March 8, including proposals for a timeline and how the case might proceed.

Bang is not named in the federal complaint against Agridime and Bang’s attorney, Brent Edison of the Vogel Law Firm in Fargo, said he is not involved in the federal case.

Bang told the North Dakota Monitor in December that the $6 million figure for Agridime commissions was “way high.”

Edison told the Monitor that Bang, a longtime cattle broker in the Killdeer area, was “similarly situated” as other investors.

This story was originally published on NorthDakotaMonitor.com

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North Dakota

North Dakota Democratic delegates unanimously endorse Harris to be presidential nominee

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North Dakota Democratic delegates unanimously endorse Harris to be presidential nominee


BY: MICHAEL ACHTERLING

BISMARCK, N.D. (North Dakota Monitor) – North Dakota delegates to the Democratic National Convention unanimously endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris during a virtual meeting on Tuesday.

The announcement from the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party comes two days after President Joe Biden announced his withdrawal from the presidential race and endorsed Harris as the presidential nominee.

A delegate tracker from The Associated Press showed that Harris had enough support by Tuesday morning to make her the Democratic presidential nominee.

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Kylie Oversen, chair of the North Dakota delegation, said in a statement the Biden-Harris administration has accomplished more for rural America and North Dakota than any other administration in recent memory.

“Investments from the American Rescue Plan, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act have been life changing for communities across our state and region,” Oversen said in the statement. 

She also cited the Biden administration’s investments in clean water infrastructure, broadband expansion and rebuilding roads and bridges.

“The Biden Harris administration has also prioritized investments in rural health systems, rural electric cooperatives, food security, and infrastructure in our tribal communities,” she said. “We are grateful for President Biden’s generational and transformative leadership.”

Oversen also said Harris has been fully vetted on the national stage and demonstrated her ability to lead in Biden’s administration.

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“Her commitment to reproductive justice and improving maternal health outcomes is especially important to me,” she said. “Our delegation looks forward to a fair, orderly process to nominate our next ticket for president and vice president, and we remain committed to maintaining Democratic leadership in the White House come November.”

Oversen added the delegation expressed its gratitude to Biden for his “decades of compassionate public service.”

“Biden’s decision to pass the torch to a new generation of leadership comes from a place of humility and true patriotism,” she said.

The Democratic National Convention will be held Aug. 19-22 in Chicago.



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Letter: Be wary of plans for large-scale dairies in North Dakota

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Letter: Be wary of plans for large-scale dairies in North Dakota


To the editor,

There is a history of confined animal feeding operations ruining the environment in many states. The new

Riverview Dairy

operations set to enter the eastern part of North Dakota near Hillsboro and Wahpeton should be looked at through the eyes of how we want our livestock industry to expand.

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Twenty-five thousand confined dairy cows is huge. Yes, they have state of the art waste disposal systems — or do they? What about flooding? Not unheard of in the Red River Valley. Additionally, the water required for these animals may seem fine but what about in a drought? Do you want to compete for drinking water with cows? Aquifers are being depleted for ag use already.

Twenty-five thousand animals hooked up to machines. Not grazed. Not good.

Workers will be temporary and not connected to the communities. Their money will be sent out of state/country. The money from Riverview will be sent out of the state. Riverview has multiple dairies in other states. Most inputs will be bought wholesale and not locally.

Ag Commissioner Doug Goehring said this LLP can do business without the change to our corporate farming law in the last legislative session. However, they sure are being subsidized by support for infrastructure stemming from other legislation piggy backed on that change in our anti-corporate farming law. A law that was meant to support local farmers to expand by accessing capital from other sources. This dairy will finish the small dairy opportunities in North Dakota using money meant to support them.

Karen Anderson
Warwick, North Dakota

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Yankton County, SD deputies arrest South Dakota fugitive after 4-week search

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Yankton County, SD deputies arrest South Dakota fugitive after 4-week search


YANKTON COUNTY, SD (KTIV) – There’s a new development in a manhunt that started last month in South Dakota.

Authorities in Yankton County say they’ve found an Iowa man wanted for violating his parole and arrested him after a nearly four-hour standoff Monday night.

The Yankton County Sheriff’s Office says its deputies learned 48-year-old Jason Sitzman was inside a home in Lesterville, South Dakota, and went to that home trying to make contact with him.

Sitzman was wanted on warrants for violating his parole in Iowa, as well as, for failure to appear in court in Yankton County and for aggravated eluding of law enforcement.

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But, Sitzman, and another woman who was inside, refused to leave the house. That was at around 7:00pm. Around 10:45pm authorities used chemical agents inside the home to get Sitzman and the woman outside. The woman is identified as 23-year-old Kendra Kirrman.

Both were taken into custody and charged with obstructing law enforcement.

Law enforcement have been looking for Sitzman for more than a month. Back on June 19th… he reportedly fled South Dakota authorities on a motorcycle… riding into Nebraska before ditching the bike at the Chalkrock Wildlife Management Area in Cedar County. Authorities searched the area using drones and a helicopter but weren’t able to find Sitzman.



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