Tycoon saves bungalow from being sealed

KUALA LUMPUR: In a last-minute attempt to prevent his residence from being sealed by a High Court bailiff, multi-millionaire Datuk Vinod Balachandra Sekhar paid RM657,428.18 to a lawyer who had sued him for breaching a settlement agreement over a share investment exercise.  

Vinod, 39, ranked the 16th richest businessman in Malaysia last year, paid RM644,294.30 to lawyer Affendi Zaharim, who is the plaintiff in the case, via a bank draft at 4pm yesterday. 

Almost sealed: The bailiff driving into the premises for which Vinod (below, left) paidRM657,428.18 as settlement yesterday.

Vinod, estimated by Forbes Asia to be worth RM734mil last year, also paid RM13,133.88 in cash before 6pm yesterday for court commissions and guard wages. 

A check with Affendi’s lawyer T. Sunther showed that the High Court had handed down a summary judgment on April 17, ordering Vinod to pay Affendi RM600,000 plus interest, which came up to RM44,186.30, and another RM108 in for costs in filing a writ of seizure and sale against Vinod’s residence. 

Affendi, 42, had obtained a writ of seizure and sale from the court after Vinod, who is Petra Group president and group chief executive, failed to pay him RM600,000 as agreed earlier after the share investment move did not materialise. 

The writ, which was filed on Monday, was to be implemented yesterday. 

The lawyer, in a statement of claim filed on July 24 last year, sued Vinod and Petra Group board chairman Tan Sri Tunku Imran Ja’afar for breaching the terms in the settlement agreement.  

It stated that in early 2000, Vinod had invited Affendi to invest US$75,000 (RM260,000) in Petra Technologies Ltd, a subsidiary of Petra Group of Companies. 

However, due to a change in circumstances, Affendi, who had paid the investment sum, later decided not to go ahead with the plan. 

Vinod and Affendi then agreed to a settlement in which Vinod was to pay the latter RM600,000 within 120 days from the date of agreement on Dec 12, 2005. 

Pressmen waited outside the residence as early as 8.30am yesterday after hearing that the bungalow in Bukit Tunku here was to be sealed. 

The bailiff, who came to the premises with two other court officials in a Honda Accord at 10.45am, was accompanied by Vinod’s head of security-cum-personal assistant to see the millionaire.  

They left after two and a half hours. 

Vinod’s head of security said yesterday’s incident was a result of “wrong information and misunderstanding”. 

When contacted, the bailiff confirmed that he obtained a writ from the High Court ordering him to seal Vinod’s residence.  

“However, it did not take place because we were informed that the matter had been settled,” he said.