German sports gear maker Adidas AG has filed a criminal complaint over the alleged financial and commercial irregularities at its Reebok India division.

Acting on a compliant, the Gurgaon police has set up a special investigation team (SIT) to probe into the alleged Rs 870-crore fraud committed by the former Adidas Managing Director, Mr Subhinder Singh Prem, and Chief Operating Officer, Mr Vishnu Bhagat.

Mr Maheswar Dayal, DCP (East) Gurgaon, said a first information report (FIR) was filed against the two former officials by Mr Shahin Padath, Director-Finance, Reebok India.

In its complaint, the company said that the two officials had allegedly siphoned off the company's money by creating ghost distributors, setting up secret warehouses and generating forged bills over the last five years.

When contacted, Adidas said, “We are given to understand that our criminal complaint has been registered for investigation by the Indian law enforcement authorities.”

The alleged scam came to light in March this year. Mr Subhinder Singh Prem, who had been made the Managing Director of Adidas India last year as a part of an integration of the businesses of both Adidas and Reebok brands, was subsequently dismissed from the company.

bindu.menon@thehindu.co.in

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