Five persons were arrested in Reebok fraud case on Wednesday. The accused have been identified as Shubender Singh Prem, Sanjay Mishra, Vishnu Bhagat, Prashant Bhatnagar and Surakshit Bhatt. The arrest was made by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) from Gurgaon.
After a complaint regarding an alleged scam of Rs 870 crore was registered by Reebok India against its former Managing Director Shubender Singh Prem and former COO Vishnu Bhagat, a Special Investigation Team was formed to trace out the accused. On Wednesday evening, all the five accused were arrested from Gurgaon and they will be produced in the local court on Thursday.
Bhupinder Singh, Assistant Commissioner of Police, remained unavailable for comments. Singh is heading the SIT constituted for the purpose. Maheshwar Dayal, deputy Commissioner of Police (East), however, confirmed the arrests and said, ‘On Thursday, the team will demand for police custody of all five of them.’
As per the FIR lodged in Sector 40 police station in Gurgaon in May 2012, Reebok India alleged that Prem and Bhagat had indulged in ‘criminal conspiracy’ and ‘fraudulent’ practices over a period of time.
According to the complaint, they both stole products by setting up secret warehouses, fudged accounts and indulged in fictitious sales to lead to a loss of Rs 870 crore to the company. In this conspiracy, various other employees might have been involved, stated the complaint.
When the alleged scam came to light in March 2012, Prem, who had been made the Managing Director of Adidas India last year, as part of the integration of Adidas and Reebok brands, was dismissed from the company. Bhagat’s services were terminated too. The duo has been accused of renting four warehouses without informing their seniors and use them to store goods. They claimed that the goods were supplied to genuine dealers.
After a complaint regarding an alleged scam of Rs 870 crore was registered by Reebok India against its former Managing Director Shubender Singh Prem and former COO Vishnu Bhagat, a Special Investigation Team was formed to trace out the accused. On Wednesday evening, all the five accused were arrested from Gurgaon and they will be produced in the local court on Thursday.
Bhupinder Singh, Assistant Commissioner of Police, remained unavailable for comments. Singh is heading the SIT constituted for the purpose. Maheshwar Dayal, deputy Commissioner of Police (East), however, confirmed the arrests and said, ‘On Thursday, the team will demand for police custody of all five of them.’
As per the FIR lodged in Sector 40 police station in Gurgaon in May 2012, Reebok India alleged that Prem and Bhagat had indulged in ‘criminal conspiracy’ and ‘fraudulent’ practices over a period of time.
According to the complaint, they both stole products by setting up secret warehouses, fudged accounts and indulged in fictitious sales to lead to a loss of Rs 870 crore to the company. In this conspiracy, various other employees might have been involved, stated the complaint.
When the alleged scam came to light in March 2012, Prem, who had been made the Managing Director of Adidas India last year, as part of the integration of Adidas and Reebok brands, was dismissed from the company. Bhagat’s services were terminated too. The duo has been accused of renting four warehouses without informing their seniors and use them to store goods. They claimed that the goods were supplied to genuine dealers.