The ‘world’s best chef’, Benoit Violier, who was found dead in his home last week, committed suicide because he was a victim of a huge wine scam that put him in considerable financial trouble, according to reports.
The report said the 44-year-old was in significant financial trouble, despite the apparent success of his restaurant in Crissier, near Lausanne in Switzerland.
It was reported that the renowned chef fell victim to a scheme where rare wines priced from £14,000 up to £27,500 were sold to restaurants – but never delivered.
Swiss financial magazine Bilan claims he was the victim of a vast scam allegedly masterminded by Private Finance Partners, a Swiss wine company based in Sion.
In 2015, the company trading in rare wines sold expensive bottles that fetched thousands of pounds to a number of restaurants, including Violier’s, but allegedly failed to deliver them.
The same bottles, priced between £14,000 and £27,500, were allegedly sold three or four times to various unsuspecting buyers.
According to Bilan, Violier’s restaurant suffered losses due to the scam of between £554,700 and £1.37 million.
Private Finance Partners was declared bankrupt on November 30 last year, and one of the brokers was taken into custody in October.
