A FAMILY is locked in a court tussle over two properties worth millions three years after a Singaporean businessman killed himself while awaiting trial for killing his adopted son.
One house - in Margate Road off Mountbatten Road - was in the name of Charles Loo Chay Loo, who was taken off life support three months after he tried to end his life in a San Francisco prison. He was then 51.
The registered owner of the other house - in Seraya Lane off Haig Road - was Loo's wife, Madam Wendy Chen Tsui Yu, 55.
But Charles' mother, Madam Tan Chan Tee, 80, and his older brother, Mr Loo Chay Sit, 57, say they paid for the houses and are the actual owners.
Charles and his wife were only holding the properties in trust for them, they claim.
The case to determine who owns the properties opened in the High Court yesterday and is fixed for a 10-day trial.
Lawyer Low Chai Chong, representing the Loos, said the Margate Road property was bought by the elder brother for $195,000 in 1978. As MrLoo and his wife were going through a divorce then, the family put the property in Charles' name instead, he said.
Noting that Charles was only 21 then, he added: 'He did not pay for the house or make any contribution towards the purchase price.'
No formal documents were drawn up and Madam Tan kept the title deeds.
MrLoo lived on the property until Charles and his wife moved in when they got married in 1980.
As for the Seraya Lane property, Mr Low said it was acquired in 1975 by Madam Tan and her sister-in-law. In 1987, Madam Tan paid $788,000 to buy over her sister-in-law's share.
The house was later transferred to Madam Chen's name as Charles had convinced his mother, who already owned one property, that she would have to pay additional taxes on it.
In 1993, he and his wife left for the US. Mr Low claimed they were fleeing from the police for their roles in share transactions. But Madam Chen's lawyer, Mr Chia Kok Khun, disputed this, saying they moved to the US to meet their son's special education needs.
In September 2004, a depressed Charles allegedly stabbed his 17-year-old son to death.
Mr Chia said MrLoo started court action to stake his claim on the Margate Road house in April 2005, while Charles was still in a coma.
In March 2006, he won a court declaration that the house was held in trust for him. He transferred the property to his name and sold it within six months for $4.8million.
In January last year, Madam Tan took similar steps and got a default judgment against Madam Chen for the Seraya Lane house.
Around this time, Madam Chen found out about both judgments and took court action to have them set aside.
But by then, the Margate Road house had already been sold and MrLoo failed to pay the sales proceeds into court as ordered. Only $2.4 million of the proceeds remain, the court heard.
Mr Chia argued that Madam Tan and Mr Loo have not been able to produce documentary proof that they paid for the properties.
This article was first published in The Straits Times on May 6, 2008
