The former wife of billionaire Chobani, Inc. CEO Hamdi Ulukaya has alleged that he “boasted on occasions that he had obtained the formula for the Chobani brand of yogurt from [competitor] Fage by bribing a former employee of Fage. He traveled to Europe and bribed this individual with 30,000 Euros.” Giray v. Ulukaya, No. 652838-2012 (N.Y. Sup. Ct., N.Y. Cnty., memorandum filed April 3, 2014). she made the allegation in a memorandum of law filed in support of her motion for injunctive relief in litigation seeking a determination that she is a 53 percent shareholder in defendant euphrates, Inc., the assets of which, she claims, were used to create Chobani.
Plaintiff Ayse Giray, a New York physician, also claims that she financed the formation of euphrates “and is merely claiming what was acknowledged by defendants in writing. The yogurt was based upon a recipe he stole from a competitor, Fage. He defrauded his angel investors by selling in excess of 100% of the shares of euphrates in addition to his own. each of them had to sue him to enforce their agreements or at least get their money back. He lied to his banks and the usDA by misrepresenting his assets and by concealing the true ownership of euphrates to avoid the need for a personal guarantee. He kept the factories’ doors open by reducing expenses through tax fraud and bypassing sewage meters.” Giray seeks an order enjoining the defen- dants from taking any action diminishing her rights and compelling them to provide her with all agreements “in connection with the prospective sale of any interest in Chobani or euphrates which would dilute, adversely affect or diminish Plaintiff’s shareholder interest..”
