Central Valley Business Owner Sentenced to 3 Years for $4.8M Livestock Feed Fraud

A Central Valley business owner was sentenced Monday to three years in prison for his role in a fraud scheme that stole $4.8 million worth of livestock feed ingredients from international food processors, federal authorities said.

Richard Best, 72, of Fresno, was also ordered by U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Thurston to pay $2 million in restitution, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant announced.

Prosecutors said Best and co-defendant Shawn Sawa, 49, formerly of Clovis, carried out the scheme between 2015 and 2017, stealing canola used to produce livestock feed and selling it for profit.

Sawa was sentenced in December 2025 to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty. Best pleaded guilty on Oct. 14, 2025.

According to court documents, the pair used Best’s now-defunct Fresno-based company, Richard Best Transfer Inc., a train-to-truck transloading business, to carry out the theft. Food processors shipped large quantities of canola to the company for delivery to customers, but Best and Sawa diverted portions of the shipments and sold them.

Sawa, who worked as a Fresno-area manager for one of the victim companies, initially received kickbacks from Best to increase shipments to the business before the two began stealing the product, authorities said.

Canola Sold Through Acquaintance in Texas

The stolen canola was sold through an acquaintance in Texas who distributed it to farms and dairies. Proceeds were then routed to Best, the company’s bank accounts and Sawa, including through an account opened in Sawa’s spouse’s name to conceal the activity.

Investigators said Best and Sawa also sent fraudulent inventory reports to the victim companies, overstating how much canola remained in storage.

Authorities said the pair used proceeds from the scheme to pay operating expenses and fund personal spending, including luxury homes, vehicles, travel, and private karate lessons.

Shortly before the scheme was uncovered, Best gave Sawa an old cellphone belonging to his deceased mother to avoid detection, fearing the company was monitoring Sawa’s work devices, according to court records.

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