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St. Ann-based supermarket chain Save A Lot has sued a 鈥淛ohn Doe鈥� for emailing its business partners false information, resulting in a loss of millions of dollars.

In a lawsuit filed in a Missouri federal court this month, Save A Lot alleges that an unknown person has been in contact with its business partners, attempting to damage Save A Lot鈥檚 reputation and convince the partners to breach their contracts with the grocery chain.

In August, an email user, under the name Ken Thomas, messaged 498 representatives of Save A Lot鈥檚 retail partners, falsely claiming that the company was filing for bankruptcy and winding down operations, the suit reads.

The user sent a second email to more than a hundred partners that same month, assuring them that the correspondence was not a scam and that Save A Lot was trying to divert attention from 鈥渢he real issue here.鈥�

John Doe 鈥渟ent the August emails with malice or negligence, as evidenced by its pleas for (Save A Lot鈥檚) retail partners to 鈥榗onsider alternate options鈥� and make 鈥榓lternative arrangements鈥� for their inventory supplier and point of sale systems,鈥� the case reads.

As a result, Save A Lot said that partners have requested to close or potentially sell locations and suppliers have halted shipments and resisted extending terms with the grocer, all at a greater rate than usual.

Plus, employees of one of Save A Lot鈥檚 competitors, Associated Wholesale Grocers Inc., have contacted Save A Lot鈥檚 business partners, referencing the contents of the fraudulent emails.

Save A Lot has spent millions of dollars to pay wholesale vendors to assuage fears of credit issues caused by the August emails and significant resources to mitigate other potential damage, according to the store chain.

The company said it has attempted to discover the anonymous email user, but the true name of the person is unknown.

Save A Lot is suing for defamation and interference with contract/business relations and the retailer demands a jury trial.