Court rejects Fruitfed claim

A $2.3 million fraud claim in the horticulture industry - lodged after the death of a key player - has been rejected by the High Court.

PGG Wrightson, owners of Fruitfed, laid the claim against long-term two market gardeners who received cheap or free goods from Fruitfed Pukekohe manager Jason Dark.

Dark's body was found in the Waikato River in 2002, on the day he had been due to explain to his employer inconsistencies in invoicing. It emerged that he had been underpricing goods for Wai Shing and Hira Bhana - something PGG Wrightson claimed the market gardeners knew about. Both firms denied the allegations.

Justice Patrick Keane said the market gardeners had received the goods "at prices agreed with Mr Dark, promptly, openly and in good faith".

"Fruitfed cannot now re-open those transactions because it regrets the pricing decisions of its branch manager."

The judge said Fruitfed made several mistakes - appointing a manager with "vulnerabilities" in administration, entrusting him complete control of the Pukekohe branch and not monitoring the branch closely. It also failed to heed warning signs and took Dark's word against evidence of invoices without sales records, which were the manager's "last attempt to stave off the inevitable".

At this stage, the branch was in disarray and Dark's departure from pricing policy was about to be exposed.

"Suspended, and facing the prospect of disciplinary action, he [Mr Dark] had no answer left," said Justice Keane in a written judgment. "In that may lie the reason for his untimely death."

Wai Shing said after the judgement that it had been forced to bear the brunt of "allegations and innuendo".