Brazilian prosecutors have charged the head of JBS beef-packing company controller J&F Investimentos and eight others from the JBS group and bank Banco Rural with crimes against the financial system.
In a statement on Tuesday, prosecutors said companies within Grupo JBS had passed on loans to each other in 2011, which is illegal in Brazil.
The news sent JBS share prices tumbling by eight per cent.
JBS is the largest beef-packing company in the world. In Canada, it owns XL Foods Inc. of Alberta.
