Property man must pay £3m over deal

ONE OF London's most promising property magnates must pay an estimated £3m to his former firm after dishonestly cutting them out of the deal to redevelop Fulham football club's historic Craven Cottage ground into luxury riverside flats.

The High Court found that Nick Sutton, 33, a former Young Property Person of the Year, should have arranged the deal on behalf of his employer Crown Dilmun, an arm of Bahrain International Bank.

Instead it found that Sutton, who was Crown Dilmun's managing director, channelled the business into his shell company, Fulham River Projects, and borrowed £15m from Irish Nationwide to purchase an option from the club to develop Craven Cottage.

Fulham believed it was dealing directly with Crown Dilmun. The company discovered the deal, and Sutton was suspended in November 2002. He left the firm, taking the Fulham deal with him. Crown Dilmun sued him for breaching his employment contract, and failing in his duties as a director.

Mr Justice Peter Smith said: 'The opportunity came his way as a director of Crown Dilmun and he was bound to exploit it for the benefit of Crown Dilmun.'

Sutton was ordered to repay his loan to Irish Nationwide by 30 September. He must also pay about £3m of interest due on the loan to Crown Dilmun. He dropped a counter-claim for a profit share he claims is worth more than £6m.