PepsiCo won the dismissal of a lawsuit by a former executive who said the food and beverage company defrauded and defamed him by denying that he invented Flamin' Hot Cheetos.
In a decision on Wednesday, US District Judge John Holcomb said Richard Montanez, who retired from PepsiCo in 2019 to become a full-time motivational speaker, did not show that PepsiCo and its Frito-Lay unit intentionally reneged on a promise to tell the "true story" of how he created the popular spicy chips.
The judge also said PepsiCo did not defame Montanez by allegedly refusing in 2023 to assist in a documentary about his life unless it debunked his claim.
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