A Dubai court ordered a former deputy chief executive of GFH Capital, the investment banking arm of Bahrain’s GFH Financial Group, to pay out $6 million in damages and other costs to GFH Financial on Wednesday, after he was convicted of fraud and embezzlement in 2015.
DIFC Courts judge Sir Jeremy Cooke referred to the defendant David Haigh as a "fraudster" in his judgment issued on Wednesday afternoon, seen by The National. He granted GFH Capital's claim in full, plus legal costs and exchange rate fees as the monies to be paid are in different currencies.
“The court, bearing in mind the seriousness of the allegations made, is satisfied on the evidence that the defendant is a fraudster who caused to be paid into his own bank accounts and that of his close friend, monies belonging to the claimant in the sums of £2,039,793.70, Dh8,735,340 and US$50,000,” the judgment said.
“Moreover, his conduct throughout these proceedings has been entirely consistent with that finding, in seeking to delay matters, in failing to give disclosure and in seeking to manipulate or play fast and loose with the court’s procedures,” it added. Haigh did not respond to requests for comment.
"We are very pleased that the DIFC Courts has upheld our claim in its entirety and rejected the unfounded allegations that the defendant has made against our client and our firm," Robert Dougans, dispute specialist at Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner, acting for GFH Capital, in an emailed statement to The National.
The claimant will now seek to enforce the judgment through the British court system to recover the sums owed to it by Haigh.
The ruling follows a four-day trial in DIFC Courts this week, which was the latest development in a long-running court battle between Haigh and GFH Capital.
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Haigh, a former boss of English Championship team Leeds United, was arrested and jailed for two years in Dubai in May 2014 for misappropriating around $6m of GFH Capital’s funds. GFH had earlier bought a 24 per cent stake in the club. In 2015 he was convicted of breach of trust by Dubai Criminal Court and deported to the UK.
The court said Haigh faked about 100 invoices and arranged payment into at least four different bank accounts in Dubai, London and Manchester. He has denied the claims. GFH issued parallel civil proceedings in the DIFC Courts following Haigh’s arrest, seeking $5m in damages plus legal and other costs it believed it was owed.
Haigh repeatedly claimed he was not obliged to pay damages to GFH Capital, and there have since been numerous appeals and counter-appeals in DIFC Courts, culminating in GFH Capital’s request for an “immediate judgment” to bring the proceedings to a close.
But despite the judge ruling in November 2016 that he defendant was obliged to pay the damages, Haigh appealed the decision and requested a retrial of the civil case, which was permitted in February 2017 and finally heard in Dubai this week.
Haigh – a UK-qualified solicitor who is representing himself, according to the court documents – did not attend the trial this week. An order issued by Justice Cooke on Monday dismissed reasons given by Haigh in the preceding days for not attending the trial, including that he was taken to hospital on June 30 and “would not then not be in a position to communicate with the court”.
The defendant has given “unsatisfactory” explanations for not appearing at court many times before in the years since the case has been ongoing, the judge said in the strongly worded document and the court is “unable to take Haigh’s say-so as representing the true situation”, he added.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
If you go...
Etihad flies daily from Abu Dhabi to Zurich, with fares starting from Dh2,807 return. Frequent high speed trains between Zurich and Vienna make stops at St. Anton.
The bio
Studied up to grade 12 in Vatanappally, a village in India’s southern Thrissur district
Was a middle distance state athletics champion in school
Enjoys driving to Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah with family
His dream is to continue working as a social worker and help people
Has seven diaries in which he has jotted down notes about his work and money he earned
Keeps the diaries in his car to remember his journey in the Emirates
Mrs%20Chatterjee%20Vs%20Norway
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ashima%20Chibber%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Rani%20Mukerji%2C%20Anirban%20Bhattacharya%20and%20Jim%20Sarbh%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
All or Nothing
Amazon Prime
Four stars
if you go
The flights Fly Dubai, Air Arabia, Emirates, Etihad, and Royal Jordanian all offer direct, three-and-a-half-hour flights from the UAE to the Jordanian capital Amman. Alternatively, from June Fly Dubai will offer a new direct service from Dubai to Aqaba in the south of the country. See the airlines’ respective sites for varying prices or search on reliable price-comparison site Skyscanner.
The trip
Jamie Lafferty was a guest of the Jordan Tourist Board. For more information on adventure tourism in Jordan see Visit Jordan. A number of new and established tour companies offer the chance to go caving, rock-climbing, canyoning, and mountaineering in Jordan. Prices vary depending on how many activities you want to do and how many days you plan to stay in the country. Among the leaders are Terhaal, who offer a two-day canyoning trip from Dh845 per person. If you really want to push your limits, contact the Stronger Team. For a more trek-focused trip, KE Adventure offers an eight-day trip from Dh5,300 per person.
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.
Key figures in the life of the fort
Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.
Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.
Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.
Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.
Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.
Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.
Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
FIXTURES
December 28
Stan Wawrinka v Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Milos Raonic v Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm
December 29 - semi-finals
Rafael Nadal v Stan Wawrinka / Pablo Carreno Busta, 5pm
Novak Djokovic v Milos Raonic / Dominic Thiem, no earlier then 7pm
December 30
3rd/4th place play-off, 5pm
Final, 7pm
How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
