Surat Businessman Arrested in Rs 8.5 Crore Pharma Fraud, Probe on Accomplices
Ahmedabad: A massive Rs 8.5 crore fraud involving pharmaceutical raw materials has come to light, with Surat-based businessman Vikas Sharma accused of duping a long-time trading partner.
The Ahmedabad City Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has arrested Sharma following a complaint by Sagar Desai, who alleged that Sharma defaulted on payments and deliberately stopped cheques after receiving consignments.
According to ACP (EOW) Manoj Chavda, Sharma had been dealing with Desai for two to three years. Initially, he made timely payments, winning Desai’s trust. But after placing bulk orders worth crores, Sharma allegedly began halting the cheques he issued.
“Despite repeated reminders and assurances, the accused failed to clear the dues and resorted to stopping the cheques he had given,” Chavda stated.
Investigators found that Sharma already had a criminal record, with four cases registered in Maharashtra and one with Ahmedabad EOW. At the time of his latest arrest, he was in judicial custody at the Central Jail for earlier offences.
Officials confirmed Sharma will be produced before a local court for remand. The probe is now focused on tracing the diverted funds and determining whether he had accomplices in the scam reports the Gujarat Samachar.
