Former Employee Indicted for Alleged Theft of More Than $28 Million from Mars Inc.
A Stamford, Conn., man has been indicted and arrested on seven counts of wire fraud and two counts of tax evasion, stemming from his alleged theft of more than $28 million from Mars Inc., which employed him from 2011 to 2023.
Paul R. Steed pleaded not guilty and was being detained at the time of this writing. Steed was employed by the Mars Wrigley subsidiary of Mars Inc. as global price risk manager for the subsidiary’s Global Cocoa Enterprise, working remotely from his home in Stamford. He was responsible for managing the company’s participation in the USDA Sugar-Containing Products Re-Export Program, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office – District of Connecticut announcement of the indictment.
Steed created a company named MCNA LLC in approximately 2016, designed to mimic the actual Mars Chocolate North America entity, and then allegedly diverted millions of dollars in credits from the USDA re-export program to a bank account set up in MCNA’s name. The indictment also alleges Steed embarked upon a stock and dividend payment scheme, by which he diverted payment of more than $700,000 worth of dividends to MCNA’s bank account and deposited into the same account more than $11.3 million in proceeds from the sale of shares in a financial services company in which Mars Inc. had an ownership interest.
Furthermore, Steed allegedly used a company he owned, Ibera LLC, to invoice Mars for services it never received, from 2013 through 2020. Mars paid Ibera LLC approximately $580,000 for these services.
The seven counts of wire fraud would carry a maximum imprisonment term on each count, while the tax evasion counts carry a max term of five years imprisonment for each.
According to court statements, Steed allegedly stole more than $28 million — more than $18 million was seized for forfeiture, and the government is seeking to forfeit a Greenwich, Conn., home that Steed allegedly purchased with nearly $2.3 million in stolen funds. Another $2 million was allegedly sent to Argentina, where Steed is a dual citizen, and has a family and a ranch.
The FBI, IRS-Criminal Investigation Division and the USDA-Office of Inspector General are investigating this case, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service. It is being prosecuted by assistant U.S. attorney David E. Novick.
