{"id":2450784,"date":"2025-06-23T11:32:58","date_gmt":"2025-06-23T15:32:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/top-producer-loses-track-of-280000-eggs-then-receives-one-sentence-ransom-note\/"},"modified":"2025-06-23T11:36:38","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T15:36:38","slug":"top-producer-loses-track-of-280000-eggs-then-receives-one-sentence-ransom-note","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/top-producer-loses-track-of-280000-eggs-then-receives-one-sentence-ransom-note\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Producer Loses Track of 280,000 Eggs, Then Receives One-Sentence Ransom Note"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftop-producer-loses-track-of-280000-eggs-then-receives-one-sentence-ransom-note%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2450784&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Cal-Maine Foods, a leading egg producer, faced a bizarre theft involving 280,000 eggs that were meant for delivery in Florida. The incident began on April 11, when a truck driver picked up the eggs from a Maryland farm. However, the eggs never reached their destination. The authorities were alerted when a dispatcher received a report indicating that the entire shipment had been stolen.<\/p>\n<p>After an inquiry, it was revealed that the eggs were taken by con artist posing as a legitimate trucking company. Using the alias &#8220;Bernardo,&#8221; he arranged for an unsuspecting driver to pick up the shipment,only to redirect it to Staten Island where the eggs were sold off. When the freight company contacted them for delivery confirmation, they discovered the pickup had been made by an imposter.<\/p>\n<p>In a twist, &#8220;Bernardo&#8221; later demanded a ransom of $7,500 to return the eggs after a series of unsuccessful calls by the freight company. The situation highlights not only the theft but also ongoing concerns regarding price gouging and business practices at Cal-Maine, which was under investigation by the Justice Department for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dollar-tree-pausing-the-sale-of-eggs-at-stores\/\" title=\"Dollar Tree pausing the sale of eggs at stores\">rising egg prices<\/a> during this time. The resolution of the theft remains elusive, with the investigation reportedly leading to a dead end.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_1)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Cal-Maine Foods, a top producer of eggs known for using other companies to ship its goods, mysteriously lost 280,000 eggs, only to discover they had been stolen by thieves intent on earning a ransom.<\/p>\n<p>The story began on April 11, when a truck driver picked up 280,000 large and extra-large brown eggs from a farm in Maryland owned by Cal-Maine, a top producer that was founded by a Mississippi farmer known as &ldquo;The Big Chicken,&rdquo; according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/investigations\/interactive\/2025\/eggs-prices-gouging-cal-maine-investigation\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>But the eggs never arrived at their destination, a farm in Florida.<\/p>\n<p>After receiving a call about a theft, a Maryland sheriff&rsquo;s office dispatcher asked if the whole freight had been stolen.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Only took the cargo&rdquo; valued at about $100,000, the male caller responded, adding, &ldquo;They took &mdash; basically &mdash; they took a whole trailer full of eggs.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\tdocument.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\", function() { \t\t\t\t\tfunction loadScript(src) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst script=document.createElement(\"script\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.src=src; \t\t\t\t\t\tscript.async=true; \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.body.appendChild(script); \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\tfunction findPreviousParagraph(selector, x) { \t\t\t\t\t\tconst targetElement=document.querySelector(selector); \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!targetElement) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Target element not found.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Get all <\/p>\n<p> elements in order as they appear in the document \t\t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphs=Array.from(document.querySelectorAll(\"p\"));  \t\t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the index of the last <\/p>\n<p> before the target element \t\t\t\t\t\tlet targetIndex=paragraphs.findIndex(p=> p.compareDocumentPosition(targetElement) & Node.DOCUMENT_POSITION_PRECEDING);  \t\t\t\t\t\tif (targetIndex===-1 || targetIndex <x) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.warn(\"Not enough paragraphs before the target element.\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\treturn null; \t\t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\treturn paragraphs[targetIndex - x]; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Set up IntersectionObserver \t\t\t\t\tfunction observeElement(element) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif (!element) return;  \t\t\t\t\t\tconst observer=new IntersectionObserver( \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(entries)=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tentries.forEach(entry=> { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tif (entry.isIntersecting) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log(\"Paragraph is now visible:\", entry.target.textContent.trim()); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tloadScript(\"https:\/\/embed.sendtonews.com\/player3\/embedcode.js?fk=s28Az7AY\"); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.disconnect(); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t\t\t\t}, \t\t\t\t\t\t\t{ threshold: 0.5 } \/\/ Adjust threshold as needed \t\t\t\t\t\t);  \t\t\t\t\t\tobserver.observe(element); \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\t\/\/ Find the 1st paragraph before #stnvideo and observe it \t\t\t\t\tlet paragraphToObserve=findPreviousParagraph(\"#stnvideo\", 2); \t\t\t\t\tobserveElement(paragraphToObserve); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>The eggs were reportedly delivered to a location in Staten Island, after which they all <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/bank-teller-disappeared-52-years-ago-2150000-cash-just-found\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">disappeared<\/a>.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">With prices soaring, eggs have been reported stolen from porches and farm stands. At one point, federal agents at the border were seizing eggs more often than fentanyl.<\/p>\n<p>Then, 280,000 eggs went missing in Maryland. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/kSFvt06Z0x\">https:\/\/t.co\/kSFvt06Z0x<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/GR98EgjVH9\">pic.twitter.com\/GR98EgjVH9<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/washingtonpost\/status\/1935736896979603719?\">June 19, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>After they arrived in Staten Island, the freight company that had been booked to transport the eggs called to confirm delivery of them, only to discover that whoever had picked up the eggs from the farm in Maryland hadn&rsquo;t been the person who was supposed to pick them up.<\/p>\n<p>What happened?<\/p>\n<p>According to the Post, it was all part of a plot concocted by a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/three-colombian-migrants-allegedly-scam-illinois-woman-20k-grocery-store\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">con artist<\/a> who goes by the name &ldquo;Bernardo.&rdquo; He reportedly gained access to the eggs by posing as a legitimate trucking company while applying with the freight company to handle the shipment to Florida.<\/p>\n<p>He then hired an unknowing dupe driver to fulfill the shipment by picking up the eggs and delivering them to Staten Island.<\/p>\n<p>When Minh Dang &mdash; a man who worked for the freight company &mdash; tried to contact &ldquo;Bernardo&rdquo; after the shipment failed to reach Florida, he initially <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/watch-disaster-unfold-diver-loses-footing-inauguration-olympic-pool\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">had no luck<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Dang called Bernardo. No answer,&rdquo; the Post noted. &ldquo;He ed, asking for proof of delivery. Dang started to panic. It was the week before Easter. The eggs should have already been hard-boiled and dunked in dyes.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;At 3:45 p.m. on April 15, he tried a new tactic, ing: &lsquo;You will be fine[d] $200 for not sending paper work in time. This fine will increase the longer we wait,&#8217;&rdquo; the report continued.<\/p>\n<p>This time Bernardo replied &hellip; with a demand for a ransom.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;You need to zelle or wire $7500 if you want your eggs,&rdquo; he wrote.<\/p>\n<p>It&rsquo;s now suspected that, after arriving in Staten Island, the eggs were sold to bodegas in New York City. As for the investigation, it&rsquo;s reportedly reached a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/police-chase-turns-shootout-suspect-reaches-dead-end-driving-pier\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">dead end<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>All this happened as Cal-Maine itself faced an ongoing investigation into its <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >allegedly shady business practices<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;In the weeks leading to the heist, Cal-Maine itself had come under investigation,&rdquo; the Post noted. &ldquo;The Justice Department had launched a formal inquiry into the spike in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/egg-prices-now-falling-through-the-floor-as-trump-keeps-promise\/\" title=\"Egg ... Now Falling Through the Floor as Trump Keeps Promise\">egg prices &#038;mdash<\/a>; and was specifically looking into Cal-Maine&rsquo;s business practices.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, farmers reportedly accused Cal-Maine of engaging in price gouging, while lawmakers demanded to know more about the company&rsquo;s record profits.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Cal-Maine Foods, the largest US Egg Producer, doubled its revenue last quarter.<\/p>\n<p>Makes sense because&hellip;<\/p>\n<p>Prices went up so higher revenues are expected.<\/p>\n<p>But with higher costs, I would expect similar profits.<\/p>\n<p>Nope.<\/p>\n<p>Their Profits jumped 718% last quarter. &#128563;<\/p>\n<p>Price Gouging. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/oHXoYIpCJ8\">pic.twitter.com\/oHXoYIpCJ8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Tyler Wright (@DefiningWealth) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DefiningWealth\/status\/1641477335361658882?\">March 30, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Cal-Maine has for its part remained quiet about the theft by issuing no public statement and avoiding interviews.<\/p>\n<p>But last month, Cal-Maine chief executive Sherman Miller did address the price gouging accusation while speaking with The Wall Street Journal.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Someone has to get blamed for everything,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;They&rsquo;re looking for a villain. We don&rsquo;t control the power to lower egg prices.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ];  \t\t\t\t\tfor( var i=0; i <inputs.length; i++ ) if( ! ( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cal-Maine Foods, a leading egg producer that relies on other companies for shipping, inexplicably lost 280,000 eggs, which were later found to have been stolen by thieves seeking ransom. The incident started on April 11 when a truck driver collected the eggs from a Maryland farm owned by Cal-Maine but failed to deliver them to their intended destination in Florida. A dispatcher from the Maryland sheriff&#8217;s office confirmed that only the cargo worth around $100,000 was taken-essentially an entire trailer of eggs. After being delivered to Staten Island, it was revealed that the person who picked up the eggs wasn&#8217;t authorized for the job. The theft was orchestrated by a con artist named &#8220;Bernardo,&#8221; who posed as a legitimate trucking company and hired an unsuspecting driver for transport. When attempts were made to contact Bernardo after delivery issues arose, he initially did not respond but later demanded a ransom of $7,500 for the return of the eggs. It is believed that after reaching Staten Island, the stolen eggs were sold in New York City bodegas. Meanwhile, Cal-Maine is under scrutiny due to ongoing investigations into its business practices amid rising egg prices and accusations of price gouging<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2450785,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Egg-Shipment.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[57745,38721,57746,57744,43400],"class_list":["post-2450784","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-egg-theft","tag-food-industry","tag-ransom-note","tag-top-producer","tag-unusual-news"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/Egg-Shipment.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2450784","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2450784"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2450784\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2450788,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2450784\/revisions\/2450788"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2450785"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2450784"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2450784"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2450784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}