A pair of former employees at a California marijuana company who tried to blow the whistle on millions of dollars worth of cannabis counterfeiting and diversion are now facing a lawsuit from their ex-boss, who denied all wrongdoing and claims instead that the two employees were thieves.
The cross-complaint, filed May 1 in Sacramento County Superior Court by Top Shelf, dba Cannazon, levies seven charges against George Engers and Garrett Webb, including fraud, misappropriation of trade secrets, breach of fiduciary duty, and more. The suit charges that the two stole an undetermined amount of money that should have been paid to the retailer’s suppliers, and seeks damages of at least $250,000.
Apart from the finger-pointing, with both sides accusing each other of serious wrongdoing, even the very work titles of Engers and Webb appear to be a matter of dispute: Engers said he was chief operating officer and Webb was general delivery manager, but the cross-complaint identifies them as a manager and dispatcher, respectively.
On top of that, the cross-complaint charges that Engers and Webb stole from Top Shelf, contrary to the narrative laid out in the lawsuit for wrongful termination that the pair filed last November, which alleged that the primary owner of Top Shelf, Quan Le, was diverting legal cannabis to the illicit market and counterfeiting popular marijuana products from brands such as Jeeter.
“Engers enlisted the help of Webb and together they wrongfully took – for their...
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