Members of The McBee Dynasty: Real American Cowboys cast are showing their support for Steven McBee Sr. amid his prison sentence after pleading guilty to one count of federal crop insurance fraud.
In the hours before the news broke on Oct. 16, his sons Steven McBee Jr. and Cole McBee, as well as the patriarch’s ex-girlfriend (and McBee Farm & Cattle Co. CFO) Galyna Saltkovska took to social media with uplifting messages, while Jesse McBee — and even Steve Sr. himself — weighed in later.
Prior to learning the details of his father’s punishment, Steven Jr. used his Instagram Stories to share a photo of them on horseback that he previously posted on Father’s Day 2025, along with a text overlay that read, “Love ya Dad. Whole family is here for you.”
RELATED:Â Steven McBee Jr. Admits to Being “Scared” and “Nervous” Over Dad’s Sentencing (EXCLUSIVE)
Cole, for his part, reposted a family photo from Jesse and Alli Ventresca’s wedding day, writing, “We will get through anything together. To the hardest working man I know, it’s our turn to be here for you. We got you dad.”
Meanwhile, Galyna, more subtly uploaded an excerpt from Theodore Roosevelt’s 1910 “Man in the Arena” speech, tagging Steve Sr. in her IG Stories.
After his sentencing, Steve Sr. shared the same speech excerpt as Galyna on his main grid, adding a quote from William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar in the caption: “Cowards die many times before their deaths; the valiant never taste of death but once.”
Finally, Jesse posted an image of his dad surrounded by rocks and dirt and holding a hammer on his Stories, adding the Latin phrase “Invictus maneo” which loosely translates to “I remain undefeated.”Â
What was Steven McBee Sr.’s sentence in his crop insurance fraud case?
A U.S. District Court Judge reportedly ordered Steve Sr. to serve 24 months behind bars on Oct. 16, along with another two years of supervised release, according to People. He also must pay $4,022,124 in restitution and will have to self-surrender before December 1.
Steve Sr. had been facing a maximum sentence of 30 years in federal prison without parole, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Missouri.
Federal prosecutors had previously filed a sentencing memorandum on Oct. 6, recommending that Steve Sr. serve 41 months in prison, in addition to paying $4 million in restitution to the USDA, followed by three years of supervised release, per DTN.
RELATED:Â Steven McBee Sr. Sentenced to 24 Months in Prison, Ordered to Pay $4M Over Crop Insurance Fraud
What crime was Steven McBee Sr. accused of?
Steve Sr. entered his guilty plea on one count of federal crop insurance fraud with a Kansas City court in November 2024, and in doing so “admitted that he engaged in fraudulent activity from 2018 to 2020 that caused an economic loss to the U.S. Department of Agriculture,” per the DOJ.
More specifically, he accepted blame for submitting fraudulent documents that underreported the McBee Farm & Cattle Co.’s corn and soybean crop totals in 2018, resulting in his business unlawfully receiving more than a combined $3 million in federal crop insurance subsidies and federal crop insurance premium subsidies.
How Steven McBee Jr. prepared for his dad’s sentencing day
Months before he learned his dad’s fate, Steven Jr. opened up about how the FBI investigation had impacted all of the McBees.
“It’s been a very, very stressful time for our family,” he shared in an exclusive July 2025 interview with The Daily Dish. “As much good as we’ve had going on, that has always been sort of this cloud that’s been looming over us at all times, and we think about it all the time.”
As Steve Sr.’s sentencing date approached, the eldest McBee brother further unpacked the emotions that were weighing on him.
Noting in an interview with The Daily Dish that he was feeling “scared, nervous, anything and everything,” he continued, “All of the emotions are being stirred leading up to my dad’s sentencing. We love him so much, and love our family unit, so to picture him not being here with us for any amount of time … it’s scary.”
“We’re focusing on the positive things we have going, of which there are so many, but I’d be lying if I said that black cloud hasn’t been hanging over us every second of every day since we first found out,” Steven Jr. added. “We’re ready to get past that day, deal with whatever comes of it and move on to say the least. We know no matter what if we stick together as a family, we’ll make it through anything.”
In the meantime, get details on The McBee Dynasty Season 3, which began filming just prior to Steve Sr.’s sentencing.
