WOOD COUNTY — The former owner of a cheese company in Rudolph was convicted and sentenced in July for stealing from more than 80 dairy farmers while in charge of the company.

Michael J. Moran, 79, pleaded guilty July 10 in Wood County Circuit Court to felony theft. The case was prosecuted by the state Department of Justice.

As part of the plea agreement, Moran agreed to give up ownership of Dairy State Cheese Co. Inc. and was sentenced to one year of probation, 100 hours of community service and nearly $10,000 in fines and other costs. Court records indicate this money has been paid.

Moran also pre-paid over $21,000 in restitution, which is being distributed among the 83 milk producers in the case.

His attorney, Stephen Meyer, told the judge his client did a lot for the community and giving up the business and losing his reputation was already a huge punishment, according to the Wisconsin Rapids Tribune. In addition to Dairy State, Moran ran a popular cheese store next to the plant. 

Circuit Court Judge Greg Potter said Moran was responsible for ruining his own reputation and business and the 83 farmers Moran stole from were among the people who needed the money most in today’s economy.

Potter also pushed back against Moran’s excuse that the farmers were selling him poor-quality milk and the government was making him pay. Potter said Moran acted like a vigilante and if the quality of milk was bad, there were legal ways to address that problem.

The case began with a 2017 complaint to the U.S. Department of Agriculture that Moran was forging the names of farmers on underpayment checks. When the USDA sets the price of milk higher than what a processor initially paid for the milk, the agency’s auditors determine the amount of underpayment and order processors to issue underpayment checks.

A person who worked with Moran told investigators Moran put the forged checks in the cash register at the cheese store, thereby converting them for his own use. The witness told investigators Moran said, “I’ve been doing this for many years and the Federal Order auditors have never caught on.”

The Department of Justice notes that among the 83 victims, 21 were over the age of 60.

Attorney General Josh Kaul said in a statement that he was proud of the work the agency did “to get justice for these hard-working Wisconsinites.”

“This case has ensured that 83 farmers got the money they were owed and hopefully will deter future theft from Wisconsin dairy farmers.” 

—  Kat Cisar