Bengaluru: A bulk order for black pepper has allegedly turned into a Rs 39.4 lakh fraud for a supplier after a man posing as a wholesale dealertook delivery of 5 tonnes of black pepper and disappeared without paying for the consignment.According to a complaint filed by Jagadish M, a manager at Gurukrupa Agrotech, the accused, identified as Sahil Dipak Kuchekar, contacted the company by email on July 15, expressing interest in purchasing black pepper. He claimed to run a wholesale business in spices and dry fruits under the name Lakshmi Enterprises in APMC Yard in Yeshwantpur.Following negotiations, Gurukrupa Agrotech received a purchase order on Aug 5 and supplied 5,000 kg of black pepper to the shop at the address given by Sahil on Aug 14. The price was finalised at Rs 750 per kg, bringing the cost of the consignment to Rs 37.5 lakh. With taxes of Rs 1.9 lakh, the total bill came to Rs 39.4 lakh.Sahil promised to clear the payment within two days but failed to do so. When Jagadish later visited the shop to follow up on the payment, he found it locked. He also found that the name Lakshmi Enterprises had been replaced with Kalakaleshwara Enterprises.Attempts to trace Sahil by enquiring with neighbouring shop owners yielded no information about his whereabouts. The complainant alleged that the accused had fraudulently obtained the pepper by posing as the proprietor of Lakshmi Enterprises.Bellandur police have registered a case under Sections 316 (criminal breach of trust) and 318 (cheating) and are investigating.
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