Naples exec in high-profile fraud case says his politically-active boss told him to steal

A former Oakes Farms executive being sued by the Naples company for allegedly stealing millions of dollars says in court papers that he was actually doing the bidding of the firm's owner — right-wing political gadfly and former boss Alfie Oakes. 

The case, turning into a high stakes he-said-she-said worthy of a Real Housewives reunion special, revolves around the actions of Steven Veneziano. "Any and all actions Veneziano undertook, through his position at the Oakes Farms entities was done at the direction of Alfie Oakes," Veneziano's attorneys contend in a May 15 court filing. 

Alfie Oakes filed the first lawsuit. In that federal lawsuit, filed in November, Oakes contends Veneziano allegedly stole from Oakes Farms and one of its divisions, South Florida Produce, to enrich himself. That includes taking “approximately $6.2 million from Oakes Farm OP alone between April 2023 and December 2024,” according to court records. 

Oakes Farms is an agribusiness with just under 3,000 acres of farmland in Collier, where it grows fruits and vegetables. It also owns the popular Seed-to-Table farm market on Immokalee Road in Naples.

Oakes Farm OP is the company’s operations arm. Veneziano was vice president of South Florida Produce until late 2024 and, according to court documents, also served as the de facto president and CEO at Oakes Farm OP and Oakes Farms Inc.

In his 110-page answer to the lawsuit, Veneziano admits to many of the charges. 

But he counters that the infractions were committed at the behest of Alfie Oakes himself — a sometimes crass political provocateur. At one point, Veneziano's rebuttal says, that rather than stealing from Oakes he was stealing for Oakes.

According to the response, Veneziano “engaged in numerous fraudulent schemes, at the direction of Alfie Oakes, for the benefit” of Oakes, himself, and other co-conspirators,” according to the court filing.

“These criminal schemes include, but are not limited to, government contract fraud, government relief program fraud, crop insurance fraud, wire fraud, tax evasion, and money laundering.” the filing states. 

Veneziano, who lives in California now, joined Oakes Farms in 2013.

Disputed actions

Alfie Oakes disputed the claims made in Veneziano’s response in a one-line email sent to the Business Observer May 26, in response to questions. “I am looking for the light of truth to shine.”

Oakes' attorney, Joseph Davidow of the Naples firm Willis & Davidow, was more expansive, referring to the original lawsuit in a separate email to the Business Observer

“The complaint alleges, in painstaking detail, Mr. Veneziano’s elaborate scheme to defraud Oakes Farms and South Florida Produce," Davidow writes in an email. "We stand on those allegations and intend to prove them.”

In addition to the lawsuit, Veneziano faces prison time after pleading guilty to one charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering in a case involving a $5.18 million fraud against the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Coronavirus Food and Assistance Program.

His sentencing has been delayed several times as he cooperates with investigators.

Like the other offenses Veneziano is accused of committing, the court filing says that he was doing Oakes’ bidding when applying for funds from the program.

According to his response, he was paid to file the fraudulent application on behalf of Alfie Oakes and unnamed coconspirators but did not receive any of the funds.

“Some funds were used to purchase gold for Alfie Oakes and other funds were used to pay Oakes Farms’ expenses and obligations,” the filing contends.

Back and forth

Alfie Oakes has not been charged in the case and federal prosecutors have not confirmed if he is or isn't being investigated. That said, Alfie Oakes’ home and farm offices were raided by federal authorities Nov. 7, 2024, two days after Veneziano signed his plea agreement.

In addition to the claims that he was doing what Alfie Oakes asked of him, Veneziano's court filing accuses Oakes of orchestrating an elaborate scheme to defraud both the government and vendors, including Publix Super Markets, by hiding his role in the business.

According to the response, Alfie Oakes “appointed a straw owner of Oakes Food and Distribution Services to conceal his true ownership to obtain a Department of Defense contract for fraudulent purposes.”

Oakes is also accused in the court filing of appointing a straw owner at Farmer Joe’s, a Cape Coral grocery store, to hide his ownership interest from Publix to avoid breaching his agreement not to compete with the Lakeland supermarket chain.

Additionally, Veneziano alleges Alfie Oakes appointed his Oakes' brother and a business partner’s wife as straw owners of the Organic General Store in Naples so he could file fraudulent applications for government relief funds through the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program.

Based on all the accusations, Veneziano’s legal team argues that, in part, the “claims are barred by the doctrine of unclean hands.” (The unclean hands doctrine, according to Bloomberg Law, “bars relief when the party seeking that relief is guilty of misconduct in connection with the subject matter of the litigation.”)