Dean Foods offers $10,000 to catch employee’s killer

Oak Farms Dairy in Dallas, owned by Dean Foods, is offering a $10,000 reward to solve the murder of one of its employees.

Juan Zelada, 53, who worked at Oak Farms Dairy for 11 years in the cold storage unit, was shot and killed in his car outside his apartment complex in south east Dallas at 1am on July 13.

Police believe the man was exiting his car when he was approached by two people who hit him in the face and shot him. Dallas detectives said the victim’s wallet was missing and robbery was a possible motive in the murder, but had no suspects.

Oak Farms, previously known as Schepps, has been offering money for information about serious crimes since the murder in 1973 of a Schepps-owned convenience store employee during a robbery.

So far, the company has paid out more than $1.5 million in rewards.

A spokesperson for Dean Foods said, “It is a tragic twist that, in this case, the victim was one of our own employees. He was not at work at the time, and none of our other employees were in danger.

“Our hearts go out to his family and co-workers who are most impacted by the loss.”