Charges dropped against Blue Bell's former president after listeria outbreak

A federal judge in Austin dismissed charges of criminal conspiracy against the former president and chief executive of Blue Bell who was charged after a listeria outbreak in 2015 that killed three people and injured several others.

SEE PREVIOUS STORY: Former Blue Bell CEO charged with conspiracy for 2015 listeria outbreak

According to court records, Paul Kruse was accused of participating in a conspiracy to conceal "potential and/or confirmed listeria contamination in Blue Bell products from certain Blue Bell customers."

U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman recognized that "in the absence of a valid waiver, the lack of an indictment in a felony prosecution is a defect affecting the jurisdiction of the convicting court."

The goal of the conspiracy "was to obtain money from Blue Bell's customers by means of false and fraudulent pretenses, representations and promises," according to the federal documents.

Kruse charges of wire fraud/attempted wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud were dropped.

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