John Tyson, the CFO of Tyson Foods, was arrested early Thursday morning in Arkansas on charges including careless driving and driving while intoxicated. Tyson is now officially suspended from his role, according to the company.
The arrest adds to a list of legal issues for Tyson who, according to his LinkedIn profile, leads both the finance and sustainability initiatives at the world’s largest poultry producer, an organization founded by his great-grandfather in 1935. Tyson’s father, John H. Tyson, is currently the company’s chairman.
Tyson’s board of directors chose to give their now-former CFO another chance and allowed him to keep his job after his arrest in November 2022. Although he initially pleaded not guilty to charges of public intoxication and criminal trespass when he was found intoxicated in a stranger’s bed, Tyson later changed his plea to guilty — presumably after learning the entire encounter was recorded on police body cam video. He paid a total of $440 in fines for the incident.
Tyson Foods released a statement to local news: “We are aware that John Randal Tyson, CFO of Tyson Foods, was arrested for an alleged DWI. Tyson Foods has suspended Mr. Tyson from his duties effective immediately.”
Curt Calaway, previously Tyson’s senior vice president of finance, corporate development and treasurer, will step in as interim CFO. Calaway has held various positions of financial leadership within the company for nearly 20 years. Before joining Tyson, he spent over a decade at PwC in auditing.
