Police bust fake liquor racket at Lonavla resort
TNN | Updated: Apr 10, 2019, 06:34 IST
Representative imagePUNE: Two staffers of a prominent resort-cum-adventure club in Lonavla were arrested on Monday for allegedly serving cheap liquor disguised as premium alcohol to customers.
According to the Lonavla (city) police, the duo — bar manager Suren Hemkumar Pradhan (30) and bar captain Manojkumar Mahendra Singh (25) — filled low-quality alcohol in bottles of well-known brands of single malt scotch, vodka, wine and tequila, and served it to customers at premium rates.
The fraud was discovered during a routine inspection, in which officials of the company, which owns the resort, checked the quality of alcohol.
The company’s administrator, Krunal Kamlesh Nair, lodged a complaint with the police, following which a team headed by B R Patil arrested Pradhan and Singh. Pradhan is originally from Sikkim, while Singh is a native of Haryana. Both men were staying in Nangargaon, near Lonavla.
The resort is quite well-known and is a sought-after getaway for residents of Pune, Thane and Mumbai. Its bar, especially, is popular as it offers luxury facilities to customers.
As per the complaint, the suspects siphoned 48 boxes of premium alcohol bottles from the bar over the past few months. The two also procured empty bottles of these brands and filled them with low-quality liquor. They stocked the bar with these bottles and served customers for months.
Each box can hold six bottles. According to police, the least expensive bottle of the lot cost Rs5,250. Per unofficial estimates, this pegs the total value of the siphoned liquor at a minimum of Rs15,12,000.
The two suspects used to manage the affairs of the bar, police said, which allowed them to serve the spurious liquor to customers.
Pradhan and Singh have been charged under Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code. They were produced before the Wadgaon Maval court on Monday evening. The court remanded them in police custody for three days.
Police are now trying to ascertain to whom the suspects sold the stolen premium liquor and exactly how the fraud was executed.
In March 2017, the excise department busted a fake imported scotch racket in the city. The department had arrested two persons and seized 72 bottles of spurious liquor, which was worth more than Rs3.68 lakh.
The arrested duo had sold the spurious scotch, packaged under well-known imported brands, to over 300 college students and IT professionals in the city. Those cheated assumed they were getting genuine liquor at a cheaper price, and purchased the spurious scotch for parties and other get-togethers through online portals and word-of mouth.
According to the Lonavla (city) police, the duo — bar manager Suren Hemkumar Pradhan (30) and bar captain Manojkumar Mahendra Singh (25) — filled low-quality alcohol in bottles of well-known brands of single malt scotch, vodka, wine and tequila, and served it to customers at premium rates.
The fraud was discovered during a routine inspection, in which officials of the company, which owns the resort, checked the quality of alcohol.
The company’s administrator, Krunal Kamlesh Nair, lodged a complaint with the police, following which a team headed by B R Patil arrested Pradhan and Singh. Pradhan is originally from Sikkim, while Singh is a native of Haryana. Both men were staying in Nangargaon, near Lonavla.
The resort is quite well-known and is a sought-after getaway for residents of Pune, Thane and Mumbai. Its bar, especially, is popular as it offers luxury facilities to customers.
As per the complaint, the suspects siphoned 48 boxes of premium alcohol bottles from the bar over the past few months. The two also procured empty bottles of these brands and filled them with low-quality liquor. They stocked the bar with these bottles and served customers for months.
Each box can hold six bottles. According to police, the least expensive bottle of the lot cost Rs5,250. Per unofficial estimates, this pegs the total value of the siphoned liquor at a minimum of Rs15,12,000.
The two suspects used to manage the affairs of the bar, police said, which allowed them to serve the spurious liquor to customers.
Pradhan and Singh have been charged under Section 420 (cheating) of the Indian Penal Code. They were produced before the Wadgaon Maval court on Monday evening. The court remanded them in police custody for three days.
Police are now trying to ascertain to whom the suspects sold the stolen premium liquor and exactly how the fraud was executed.
In March 2017, the excise department busted a fake imported scotch racket in the city. The department had arrested two persons and seized 72 bottles of spurious liquor, which was worth more than Rs3.68 lakh.
The arrested duo had sold the spurious scotch, packaged under well-known imported brands, to over 300 college students and IT professionals in the city. Those cheated assumed they were getting genuine liquor at a cheaper price, and purchased the spurious scotch for parties and other get-togethers through online portals and word-of mouth.
Making sense of 2019
#Electionswithtimes
View Full Coverage
All Comments ()+^ Back to Top
Refrain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or inflammatory, and do not indulge in personal attacks, name calling or inciting hatred against any community. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines by marking them offensive. Let's work together to keep the conversation civil.
HIDE