Detectives investigating fraud claims at a north-east firm while it was run by two Aberdeen brothers have sent their report to prosecutors.
Police Scotland have been considering files submitted by Cosalt following a civil court claim against Calum and Stuart Melville, who once ranked among Scotland’s richest men.
The Crown Office will now give “full and careful” consideration to the report – and decide whether anyone should face prosecution.
The civil battle centred on claims made by Cosalt Offshore – which traded as GTC Group until the brothers sold the firm in 2007 – that equipment worth millions had not been received by its Aberdeen arm.
At the time, Cosalt Offshore employed 240 people in Aberdeen and about 100 in Stavanger, Norway, and Lowestoft, Suffolk. It provided lifting, tooling and marine services to the oil and gas industry.
The firm alleged in 2010 that there may have been a fraud involving payments to a London-registered company, Meapac, for goods that were never delivered, the proceeds of which would end up in accounts controlled by the Melvilles.
Meapac and the Melvilles agreed to pay Cosalt £2million in an out-of-court settlement in October 2012, but said they were not admitting liability for an alleged multimillion-pound fraud.
They said there were “very strong business reasons” for avoiding court action.
However, they insisted they would have welcomed the opportunity to resolve the matter at the Court of Session.
The brothers vehemently deny that they were responsible for any fraudulent activity.
A police spokesman said: “Police Scotland can confirm that inquiries into alleged stock discrepancies at Cosalt are now complete. No one has been charged as a result of these inquiries.
“A report will be submitted to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service for their consideration.”
A spokesman for the Crown Office said: “We are expecting a report from the police imminently and will give it full and careful and consideration on receipt.”