Wednesday, September 12, 2012

A federal prosecutor says a manager at the Iowa egg farms linked to a 2010 nationwide salmonella outbreak will plead guilty to trying to bribe a USDA inspector to allow the sale of unsafe eggs.

Tony Wasmund is charged with conspiring to bribe a public official. U.S. Attorney Stephanie Rose says Wasmund has agreed to plead guilty Wednesday at federal court in Cedar Rapids.

A charging document says Wasmund authorized an employee to offer a $300 bribe to a U.S. Department of Agriculture inspector to approve eggs for sale that did not meet federal standards.

Wasmund is a former manager under Jack DeCoster whose farms in Wright County were blamed for the outbreak.