Ex-manager pleads guilty to conspiracy against Foster Farms

A former maintenance manager at Foster Farms pleaded guilty Monday to conspiring to defraud the company over improvements at its Livingston chicken plant.

Surjit Toor, 61, of Hilmar admitted to conspiring in 2012 to have $46,979 worth of work billed to his son’s business, Mid State Mechanical, which was not a contractor on the two projects.

One was the installation of a catwalk for use by U.S. Department of Agriculture inspectors. The other involved changes to an ammonia tank used in refrigeration.

Toor, appearing in U.S. District Court in Fresno, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud, based on his use of the U.S. Postal Service for the scheme. The prosecution dropped a separate charge of mail fraud in exchange for the plea.

Judge Dale A. Drozd set a May 16 sentencing hearing for Toor. The conspiracy charge has a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, but the plea agreement said mitigating factors could make it much less.

Toor also was ordered to pay $46,979 in restitution to Foster Farms, which he did Monday, the U.S. attorney’s office said.

A grand jury in 2014 indicted Toor and his son, Raju Toor, 34, on charges of mail fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud. The prosecution agreed last month to seek dismissal of the son’s case after a year if he does not commit any crimes.

The massive chicken plant is next to the Livingston headquarters of Foster Farms, the top-selling poultry brand in the West. It also processes turkey in Turlock and has chicken plants in Fresno, Porterville and four other states.

This story was originally published February 8, 2016 at 5:16 PM with the headline "Ex-manager pleads guilty to conspiracy against Foster Farms."