Chilean prosecutor moves to formalize fraud case against former Australis owner and executives.
The Public Prosecutor’s Office of Chile has initiated formal proceedings against Isidoro Quiroga, the former owner of salmon farming firm Australis, and two former executives.
On 6 December, Chile’s prosecutor’s office formally charged Quiroga, former Australis president Martín Guiloff, and former administration and finance manager Santiago Garretón with crimes of fraud and disloyal administration, following a court authorization to review emails and investigate allegations brought by Joyvio regarding the 2018 sale of Australis.
The case stems from allegations by Chinese foodservice group Joyvio, which purchased Australis in 2018 for $921 million.
The allegations include claims that Quiroga and other executives engaged in fraudulent activities during the sale of Australis, including hiding, falsifying, and manipulating key information to inflate the company’s salmon production figures and valuation. Joyvio has filed a lawsuit seeking $1.22 billion in damages, accusing Quiroga and others of fraud and unfair administration.
In November, Prosecutor Constanza Encina received authorization to review emails from 11 former Australis executives, including Quiroga, his sons Isidoro and Benjamín, and former Australis President Martín Guiloff and Finance Manager Santiago Garretón. On 6 December, the prosecutor’s office announced plans to formally charge Quiroga, Guiloff, and Garretón with fraud and disloyal administration.
Joyvio’s legal representatives, Gabriel Saliaznik and Jorge Bofill, welcomed the prosecutor’s decision, stating it validates the company’s longstanding claims. “Multiple antecedents have been patiently and rigorously gathered in the investigation that have led the prosecutor’s office to take the decision to formalize it responsibly,” they said. They further described the case as potentially “the largest fraud in the history of Chile.”
Quiroga’s lawyer, Juan Domingo Acosta, criticized the prosecutor’s handling of the case, alleging undue influence by Joyvio. “This leads us to think that it is a political and media case invented by Joyvio to force an agreement and that the moves from the prosecutor’s office, in fact, are unfortunately owing to that strategy,” Acosta said.
Joyvio, a subsidiary of Chinese conglomerate Legend Holdings, is seeking restitution and clarity over the financial practices it alleges distorted Australis’s valuation during the acquisition process.
