An Iowa farmer has pleaded guilty to multiple federal charges after admitting to defrauding the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) out of more than $1.5 million in COVID-19 pandemic subsidies, committing identity theft, crop insurance fraud, and stalking a witness involved in his case.
Tanner James Seuntjens, 32, from Danbury, Iowa, entered his plea on September 19, 2025, in federal court in Sioux City. He was convicted of one count each of theft of government funds, aggravated identity theft, crop insurance fraud, and stalking.
According to court documents and a plea agreement, Seuntjens admitted that between June 2020 and June 2021 he submitted fraudulent applications for Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) grants at three different USDA-Farm Service Agency offices. The applications were filed under his own name as well as those of another individual and a limited liability company. Each application falsely claimed ownership of thousands of swine to qualify for livestock subsidies based on self-certified inventory counts. Seuntjens also provided false documents during spot checks conducted by USDA officials who sought to verify the legitimacy of the payments.
Seuntjens further admitted that from March 2021 through April 2022 he defrauded a South Dakota bank by forging an authorized representative’s signature on at least 20 two-party checks issued from grain and livestock sales. This action deprived the bank of over $400,000 in collateral it was owed. The misappropriated funds were used for farming expenses, personal travel including trips to Cocoa Beach and Disney World, transfers to family members, and significant cash withdrawals.
Additionally, Seuntjens acknowledged committing crop insurance fraud during the 2022 and 2023 seasons by underreporting yields to receive unwarranted insurance payouts.
The plea agreement also states that while under pretrial release in August 2025—and despite court orders prohibiting contact—Seuntjens traveled to Nebraska where he placed a tracking device on the vehicle of a person who was both a victim and witness in his federal case. He admitted this act was intended to harass and intimidate the individual.
Sentencing will be scheduled following completion of a presentence report. United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand will preside over sentencing proceedings. Seuntjens remains in custody due to violations related to his pretrial release conditions.
He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of three years imprisonment without parole and could receive up to 42 years’ imprisonment along with fines totaling $1.75 million. Upon release from prison, he may also be subject to up to five years supervised release.
Assistant United States Attorney Timothy L. Vavricek is prosecuting the case which was investigated by the USDA Office of Inspector General and Special Investigations Staff.
