Chris Lischewski will have an initial appearance in court on 6 June following his indictment by a federal grand jury alleging he conspired to fix the prices of canned tuna in his former role as the president and CEO of Bumble Bee Foods.
Lischewski’s first court appearance was scheduled for 29 May but his lawyers, Benedict Y. Hur and Manish Kumar of Keker, Van News and Peters LLP, filed for a continuance, which was granted by U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph C. Spero.
The delay was granted to allow Lischewski and his legal team to coordinate with the date for a status conference with U.S. District Judge Edward M. Chen, taking place at 2:30 p.m. on 6 June. The new schedule sets Lischewski’s hearing before Spero for 9:30 a.m. on 6 June, according to documents filed with California’s Northern District Court in San Francisco.
The one-count felony charge, brought by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, was originally filed 16 May. Lischewski stepped down from his position with Bumble Bee Foods on 25 May, with the company citing his need “defend himself from the accusations made against him.”
Lischewski faces a maximum 10-year prison sentence and a fine of up to USD 1 million (EUR 856,400).
