Benton County Businessman Sues Over Land Deal Gone Wrong, Claims Fraud

The Four Points Sheraton at 211 SE Walton Blvd. in Bentonville. It had total operating revenue of $385,126 in 2024. (Michael Woods)

A Benton County man thought he was buying undeveloped land in Bentonville for his dream of building a restaurant and market. But Nagaraju Bavirisetti’s dream soon turned into a nightmare.

Bavirisetti had sold his house for the down payment and paid Kunal Mody of Chicago more than $300,000 for 1.5 acres next to Mody’s Four Points Sheraton at 211 SE Walton Blvd. in Bentonville, which Mody owned through his company Sree Akshar Inc.

After making payments, Bavirisetti learned that Mody couldn’t transfer the title to the property because it was being used as collateral for a $10 million loan that Sree Akshar took out in 2016, according to the lawsuit filed by Bavirisetti’s World Food Mart LLC. The case was filed in November 2024 in Benton County Circuit Court.

The property was foreclosed on last year and now is owned by the lender, Bayside USB CRE Loans LLC of Miami.

World Food Mart accused Mody of actual fraud or deceit and constructive fraud for making “false representations with the intent” to prompt Bavirisetti’s LLC to buy the land, the lawsuit said. World Food Mart is seeking at least $300,000 in damages.

Mody couldn’t be reached for comment last week, and he hadn’t been served with the lawsuit as of Feb. 21.

Sree Akshar bought 5.94 acres in Bentonville for $2 million in 2021. The property included a 113,504-SF Four Points Sheraton, but the northern portion of the land, about 1.5 acres, was undeveloped.

In 2016, Sree Akshar borrowed $10 million from U.S. Bank, using the property as collateral. “Akshar struggled to keep the loan current” and in December 2020, the bank transferred its interest in the loan to Bayside USB CRE Loans, which buys distressed assets, the lawsuit said.

Meanwhile, in 2021, Bavirisetti and Mody started talking about the possibility of Bavirisetti buying Sree Akshar’s excess land.

Bavirisetti and his wife and business partner already owned an adjoining parcel next to the excess land, near where he and his wife operated an Indian restaurant called Flavors Indian Cuisine, the lawsuit said.

Bavirisetti’s “dream was to combine the two parcels and build a restaurant, market and homes for himself and his extended family,” the lawsuit said.

Mody promised to sell the land to Bavirisetti’s World Food Mart for $350,000, the lawsuit said.

World Food paid at least $300,000 to Sree Akshar. But “Mody never asked Bayside to release the Excess Land from its mortgage,” the lawsuit said.

Mody knew that his company couldn’t transfer the title of the property without first getting a release of mortgage from Sree Akshar’s lender, the lawsuit said.

In the meantime, in August 2023, Bayside filed a foreclosure lawsuit against Sree Akshar. At the time of the lawsuit, Sree Akshar owed Bayside $8.5 million in principal and five months of interest totaling $157,275.

Throughout the foreclosure proceeding, Mody told Bavirisetti that World Food Mart would receive the title to the land.

Bayside won its case against Sree Akshar on its motion for summary judgment. On Jan. 24, 2024, Sree Akshar filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization in an attempt to stop the foreclosure sale that was scheduled for the next day, World Food Mart’s lawsuit said.

Sree Akshar reported $10.8 million in assets and $11.4 million in debts in its bankruptcy. The hotel was valued at $10.5 million, and Bayside was owed $9.08 million, the bankruptcy filing said.

In 2022, Sree Akshar’s gross revenue was $2.2 million, and in 2023 it climbed to $2.8 million.

The hotel’s revenue continued to rise in 2024. Through the end of October 2024, the Four Points Bentonville had total operating revenue of $3.16 million and a net income of $385,126, according to a report filed in the company’s foreclosure case.

Bayside received the property in December.

World Food Mart is represented by attorney J. Brian Ferguson of Rogers, who declined to comment on the case.