Monona man faces 30 years for livestock theft and more

A Monona-area farmer recently pleaded guilty in federal court to one count of livestock theft, one count of wire fraud and one count of making a false bankruptcy declaration. 

COVID-19 fraud and livestock theft

According to information the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa, Michael Wayne Butikofer, 53, operated an unlicensed custom cattle operation, known as “Fawn Hollow,” in Clayton County. 

The federal prosecution claims Butikofer operated a large farming operation near St. Olaf and at smaller locations in Iowa and Wisconsin. “Fawn Hollow” is referred to as a “custom cattle-feeding operation” in which farm employees raised cattle owned by other operations and then sold the cattle to a slaughterhouse in Wisconsin. Law enforcement information says neither Butikofer nor “Fawn Hollow” are registered with the United States Department of Agriculture as a “dealer”. 

Information from the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Butikofer sold cattle owned by half a dozen investors, from July 2020 to February 2022, and kept the money for himself. Court information also said that Butikofer was accused of defrauding the federal government of more than $200,000 in emergency assistance funds designed to assist livestock producers during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Additionally, legal documents show that in February 2022, Butikofer received over $1.5 million from the Small Business Administration (SBA) as part of an application for an Economic Injury Disaster Loan. The prosecution said Butikofer falsely told the SBA he’d use the proceeds “solely as working capital to alleviate economic injury caused by” the COVID-19 pandemic. In all actuality, once the $1.5 million was received from the SBA, Butikofer used at least $75,000 of the EIDL funds to pay an attorney in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding.

Butikofer could face a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and $750,000 in fines. However, a sentencing date has yet to be set.

The case was investigated by the Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Department of Agriculture, Small Business Administration, Office of Inspector General, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the United States Department of Labor.

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