Burnaby Lake Greenhouses sues long-time manager for $7M, alleging decades of fake invoices from a company he secretly owned.
Surrey Greenhouse Manager Sued Over $7M Alleged Fraud
A Surrey greenhouse manager who spent more than three decades at Burnaby Lake Greenhouses has suddenly resigned — and now faces a $7 million lawsuit.
The family-owned business, known for cut flowers, potted plants, and decorative greens, claims its former head of the cut flower department paid a company that never delivered any products, according to documents filed in B.C. Supreme Court.
Allegations Span Over a Decade
The company, Mac Greenery and More Enterprises, was uncovered in January as being wholly owned by the manager, Duane Ingram, who joined Burnaby Lake in 1989 and became department head in 1993.
According to the lawsuit, payments to Mac Greenery totaled $7,174,298.30 over 13 years. Shockingly, the first invoice from this company arrived just one day after the business was registered in December 2012.
How the Scheme Allegedly Worked
Burnaby Lake alleges that Ingram routinely emailed “prepay invoices” from Mac Greenery to the chief financial officer and accounts payable staff. He then reportedly requested cheques be made out to Mac Greenery and handed them directly to him.
The lawsuit claims Ingram would later sign off as if the orders had been delivered — though no products ever arrived.
Discovery of the Fraud
The scheme began unraveling when an accounts payable employee questioned an extra invoice in January. Confused, she spoke to the assistant manager, who did not recognize the company as a legitimate vendor.
Burnaby Lake’s internal investigation revealed that the GST number listed for Mac Greenery was not registered and no goods had ever been supplied.
Manager Steps Away Amid Allegations
On Jan. 27, after these findings, Ingram called in sick repeatedly, citing doctor appointments and hospital visits. Within days, he resigned from the greenhouse he had worked at for over 36 years.
Burnaby Lake Greenhouses asserts that Mac Greenery was created solely to misappropriate funds and that Ingram knowingly concealed the fraud. The case is now being pursued in B.C. Supreme Court.
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