Australis Seafood has made a public statement about the "fraudulent administration" of Isidoro Quiroga Moreno. The company's lawyers, Jorge Bofill and César Ramos, explained in the statement that with his intentional management to increase the price of the sale, he seriously damaged the company's patrimony.
The conflict that would appear in March is still under discussion between the old and the new owner. Now Australis would give its official version.
This Australis statement points out that Quiroga Moreno was a director of Australis until October 2020. It means that he remained in that position after having committed the sale to a third party. As Australis explains "in this position of power, he acted fraudulently in coordination with his sons and his closest executives, some of whom remained in the company on Quiroga's recommendation."
Therefore, the lawsuit for fraudulent administration is because the defendants were part of the management of Australis, between February 2019 and July 2022. The time in which, as directors and executives of the company, they made decisions that harmed the business.
According to Ramos, this salmon production plan would be carried out knowing that its implementation would violate environmental regulations by far exceeding the maximum volumes permitted. Consequently, he exposed Australis to sanctions for each production cycle.
According to the data offered by Australis, there are irregularities in the planning, planting, and harvesting of salmon in 38 concessions and 56 productive cycles. "Many of these plantings were carried out when the board of directors was controlled by Isidoro Quiroga. Others were performed during the time that Isidoro Quiroga remained as a director and no longer as controller. During both periods Quiroga was a director of the company, so he is responsible for these decisions that affected Australis' equity," said Ramos.
Thus, Ramos indicates that for the infractions which would be added to the crime of fraudulent administration, he could be sentenced to between 15 and 20 years of prison.
Quiroga has also reportedly taken legal action against Australis' management the past week, denying the accusations against him.
Australis Seafoods has established itself as a dominant player in the Chilean salmon industry, owing to its entrepreneurial leadership. The company boasts of vertical integration, encompassing fish farming, as well as the production of frozen and canned products.
