Tuna exec indicted in probe of pricing

Bumble Bee CEO is 4th to be charged

The chief executive of one of the “big three” tuna companies has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that he conspired to fix the prices of packaged seafood, the Department of Justice said on Wednesday.

The one-count felony indictment charges that Christopher Lischewski, president and CEO of Bumble Bee Foods LLC, carried out the conspiracy by agreeing to fix the prices of packaged seafood during meetings and other communications between 2010 and 2013. The co-conspirators issued price announcements and pricing guidance in accordance with these agreements, according to the indictment.

He is the fourth individual to be charged as a result of the ongoing federal antitrust investigation.

The DOJ has been looking into allegations that Bumble Bee, along with Pittsburghbased StarKist and with TriUnion Seafoods, which owns the Chicken of the Sea brand, conspired to keep the price of shelf-stable seafood artificially high. Both Bumble Bee and TriUnion are based in San Diego.

In a statement, Mr. Lischewski’s attorney John Keker of Keker, Van Nest & Peters, said, “Chris Lischewski is a decent and honorable man, who has lived a hardworking and ethical life. He has been a leader and beacon within the seafood industry for more than 25 years. And most significantly on this dark day, he is innocent of any wrongdoing.

“We are disappointed by the DOJ’s decision to charge him with criminal conduct,” the SEE TUNA, PAGE B-2