Mumbai: Shipping Firm Consultant Held For ₹7.74 Crore Fraud; Exploits Position, Falsifies Invoices

The Mata Ramabai Ambedkar (MRA) Marg police on Sunday arrested a city-based shipping firm business head consultant from Borivali for duping the company of Rs7.74 crore. The company reported the fraud to the police on December 12, 2023, initially estimating the loss at Rs3.82 crore.

Details of case

The accused, Ritesh Fernandes, 47, allegedly exploited his position within the company – Hind Offshore Private Limited – and deceived the firm director, Manish Madhusudan Kshirsagar, by falsely promising increased business and commission payments to affiliated companies.

Between 2017 and 2023, Fernandes allegedly submitted counterfeit invoices to the company, which failed to correspond to any actual orders. In 2021, he induced the manager to place an order with Neon Consultant, a company in which he is a partner. He later fabricated invoices using forged signatures of his relatives – wife, mother-in-law, father-in-law and friend.

Later, as police investigated the case, Fernandes turned out to be the prime suspect. More than a week later, he was served a notice under CrPc 41 (notice by police prior to arrest). However, he failed to cooperate with the investigation.

Case filed against Fernandes; investigation underway

Fernandes is now facing charges under sections 420 (cheating), 408 (criminal breach of trust by a clerk or a servant), 34(acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention),120- B(criminal conspiracy), and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.

The investigation is underway, with the police investigating the involvement of Fernandes’s relatives.