Flamboyant entrepreneur is one of the biggest desi success stories.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: San Francisco entrepreneur and millionaire Gurbaksh Chahal has pleaded “not guilty†to domestic violence charges. He faces 45 such charges.
Chahal, 31, is being accused of domestic violence by his girlfriend, who alleges that he repeatedly assaulted her at his home in Rincon Hill last Monday. He is alleged to have hit and kicked her 117 times over half-an-hour. Also, one of the deadly weapons he used is listed in the criminal complaint as a pillow.
According to court documents, Chahal beat up his girlfriend after he allegedly learned she had gone to Las Vegas with another man and cheated on him. According to reports, Chahal had used violence against her last month too, on July 4th.
Chahal denies the charges, and is out of custody after posting bail of $1 million, which was increased from an initial $125,000. His passport has also been confiscated.
Born Tarn Taran Sahib, Chahal grew up mostly in San Jose, California. The self-made millionaire dropped out of high school at age 16 to create his first business venture, ClickAgents, which he later sold for $40 million in 2000.
His next company, BlueLithium, was bought my Yahoo! in 2007 for $300 million, allegedly in cash. He is currently the Chairman and CEO of RadiumOne.
All of his companies are involved in advertising, and his current company was recently valued at over $500 million. He received an honorary degree in commercial science from Pace University 2010, and was proclaimed one of the world’s richest and fittest men by Men’s Health magazine in 2011. The TV show “Extra†called him “America’s most eligible bachelor.†His personal net worth is said to be at least $200 million.
Chahal calls himself a “die hard entrepreneur,†and is one of the most recognizable Indian-American businessmen in the world. No word yet on how much jail time he may face if convicted on some, if not all, the counts being leveled against him.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com