The Justice Department has recommended ex-cattleman Cody Easterday spend at least 10 years and one month in prison for defrauding Tyson Fresh Meats and another victim out of $244 million.

In a memo filed in the U.S. District Court for Eastern Washington, federal prosecutors called the theft “staggering.” Following standard sentencing guidelines, they recommended a sentence of between 121 months and 151 months, or up to 12 years and seven months.

Easterday is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 4 in Yakima by U.S. District Court Judge Stanley Bastian.

Easterday’s attorney, Carl Oreskovich, argues in the defendant’s sentencing memo that Easterday should be sentenced to probation for three years, including one year of home detention.

Easterday pleaded guilty in March 2021 to one count of wire fraud. Easterday supplied cattle to Tyson’s beef plant in Pasco, Wash. Between 2016 and 2020, he billed Tyson for more than 200,000 head of cattle that didn’t exist. Tyson’s losses totaled $233 million.

Easterday also defrauded Segale Properties of Tukwila, Wash., out of $11 million. In a plea agreement, Easterday pledged to make restitution to the victims.

In arguing for probation only, Oreskovich said Easterday wasn’t funding a lavish lifestyle. He lost about $200 million trading on the future price of commodities over five years.

Commodities trading became as a hedge against fluctuating market prices, but became a gambling addiction, according to Oreskovich.

Easterday has been diagnosed as having a severe gambling disorder, Oreskovich said. “Mr. Easterday’s fall from grace stems high-risk commodities trading.”

Easterday accepted responsibility for his crime and sought to raise money for the victims by selling his family’s extensive cattle and farm holdings through bankruptcy court, according to the Justice Department.

By accepting responsibility, Easterday’s sentencing range was reduced by approximately four to six years, according to the Justice Department.

Nevertheless, even after bankruptcy proceedings, Tyson is still out $170 million, according to federal prosecutors.

They highlighted the magnitude of the crime by noting Easterday stole enough money to fund the city of Yakima’s police department for more than eight years and its fire department for more than 15 years.