7-day police remand for former Reebok officials
There is a high probability of more arrests within the company, say police
New Delhi: Five former Reebok India officials were sent to police custody for seven days by a district court in Gurgaon on Thursday over an alleged ₹ 870 crore fraud after they had been arrested the day before, with the police saying that more arrests are likely.
“The court has granted a seven-day custody of the accused to Gurgaon police to further the investigation process," said public prosecutor Pradeep Kumar Gulia. “The accused might be taken to Ahmedabad and Goa for recovery of cash, electronics and fake documents present there."
The police had asked the court for a 10-day remand, Gulia said. The five are Shubhinder Singh Prem, Vishnu Bhagat, Sanjay Mishra, Prashant Bhatnagar and Surakshit Bhatt.
Prem and Bhagat were arrested along with the three others on Wednesday evening. They were charged with falsification of records, diversion of funds, causing loss to the company and wrongful gain, said Maheshwar Dayal, deputy commissioner of police, Gurgaon (east).
“There is a high probability of more arrests within the company," said Dayal, without elaborating.
Defence lawyer Praveen Agarwal, partner and advocate at Agarwal Jetley and Co., said the five didn’t need to be in police custody.
“Both Prem and Bhagat have been cooperating with all investigating agencies like Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), the income-tax department and the Gurgaon police, and they have given their replies to all these agencies."
The arrests were based on evidence, Dayal said.
“We have found transaction records of the last three years, cyber forensics of their laptops, various bank account statements, among other evidence," added Dayal.
Reebok India Co., a subsidiary of sportswear maker Adidas AG, said in an emailed statement: “The investigation of the criminal complaint filed by Reebok India has progressed to the next stage by the Indian law enforcement authorities. Reebok India has and will continue to cooperate with the investigation authorities."
Adidas had accused the two former Reebok India former executives of a ₹ 870 crore fraud. The company filed a first information report (FIR) with the Gurgaon police on 21 May, accusing Prem and Bhagat of fraud.
Following this, the government asked SFIO to investigate the matter and report on this in four months. SFIO works under the corporate affairs ministry.
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