Hyderabad police has arrested William S Pinckney, chairman and CEO of Amway India, acting on a complaint lodged by a consumer.
This is not the first time when the chief of the one of the top direct selling consumer firms in the country has been arrested. Last year at around the same time, Pinckney and two directors of the company were arrested on charges of financial irregularities.
Kurnool Superintendent of Police Raghurami Reddy said Pinckney was arrested in Gurgaon on Monday. The arrest was based on a complaint alleging unethical circulation of money through Amway’s operations.
"The CEO has been booked under the Prize Chits and Money Circulation Schemes (Banning) Act," Reddy told news agency PTI.
"Amway, as a law-abiding corporate, has always followed law of the land, fully cooperated in all ongoing investigations and has been responsive to queries and documentation," the company said in a statement.
Amway, which operates in India through a wholly owned arm, further said that the firm has furnished all information and documents sought by the police officials.
“We urge the authorities to take note of the challenges faced by this industry and give us clarity to facilitate its smooth functioning,” it added.
(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)