Dairy firm manager kills self after facing probe for Rs 40 cr embezzlement
The deceased, Naveen Pollineni of Andhra Pradesh, was working at Tirumala Milk Products Pvt Ltd.
Representative image (File)
CHENNAI: A 38-year-old chartered accountant working as the treasurer manager of a private dairy firm allegedly died by suicide inside a hut on a vacant plot he owned in Puzhal, on Wednesday.
The deceased, Naveen Pollineni of Andhra Pradesh, was working at Tirumala Milk Products Pvt Ltd. Accused of misappropriation of Rs 40 crore of company funds, he emailed a suicide note to his sister and top management, in which he named two company officials for forcing him to take the extreme step as they threatened him with imprisonment despite him promising him to repay the embezzled amount, police sources said.
Based on her alert, the police went to the hut and recovered his body, which was moved to the Government Stanley Medical College Hospital for autopsy. Preliminary investigations suggested that Naveen assured the senior management that the misappropriated money would be repaid and requested them not to take legal action. But when they went ahead with a police complaint, he was distressed and took the extreme step. He was unmarried and was living alone in an apartment in Madhavaram.
An official note from Greater Chennai Police (GCP) said Naveen was neither summoned nor questioned at any police station in the city. However, as the name of Deputy Commissioner (Kolathur) has been mentioned in social media and some news outlets, the Joint Commissioner (West) has been directed to probe the allegations and file a report.
According to the police, Tirumala Milk Products’ legal manager, Mohammed Thamimul Ansari, approached the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on June 24, alleging that Naveen misappropriated Rs 40 crore of company funds.
While CCB had not initiated investigations for want of documents and bank account statements from the complainant, the Naveen moved the court and a hearing is due on Friday (July 11).
A day after the complaint to CCB, legal manager Ansari had also filed the same complaint with the Kolathur DC on June 25, and the complaint was forwarded to the Madhavaram crime inspector. But Naveen was not summoned to the police station, police said.
On Wednesday (July 9), Naveen went to Britannia Nagar in Puzhal, where he owns a plot and took his own life after mailing a suicide note to his sister and top management.
