DOCUMENT: Internet

Female "Fan" Is Harassing Me, Tech Star Claims

Multimillionaire seeks help with "obsessed" gal

Gurbaksh Chahal

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Gurbaksh Chahal

JUNE 25--The tech multimillionaire who was recently fired from his CEO post after pleading guilty to domestic violence charges contacted cops this month to claim that he was being harassed by a “female fan who is obsessed with him,” according to a police report.

Entrepreneur Gurbaksh Chahal was bounced from atop RadiumOne Inc., an online advertising network, after he copped in April to beating his girlfriend inside a bedroom in his San Francisco penthouse. The brutal 2013 attack, which was recorded by a home surveillance camera, prompted prosecutors to file dozens of felony charges against the 31-year-old Chahal (who was freed on $1 million bail).

But when the victim refused to cooperate with investigators--and a judge ruled that the surveillance video could not be used because it was obtained without a search warrant--Chahal pleaded guilty to reduced misdemeanor charges (for which he was sentenced to probation and domestic violence counseling). According to news reports, the surveillance video showed Chahal hitting and kicking his girlfriend 117 times.

Chahal (right) is pictured in the adjacent photo.

In a blog post following his plea, Chahal did not deny beating the woman, but instead claimed that publicity about the case was “overblown drama because it generates huge volumes of page views for the media given what I have accomplished in the valley.” Chahal, who previously sold a company to Yahoo for $300 million, added, “Celebrities in sports, entertainment and business, and high net worth individuals in general are all potential targets. It was only a matter of time when I would fall prey.”

Chahal now contends that he has fallen prey to a South Carolina accountant who has resumed harassing him via unwanted e-mails to his sister and a female friend.

Earlier this month, Chahal contacted police in Spartanburg to report that Parveen Bining, 28, was attempting to “interfere with his personal and professional life.” According to the report, Chahal is “a public figure” and Bining is a “female fan who is obsessed with him.”

In September 2012, Chahal’s personal assistant called Spartanburg police to report that his boss, “a celebrity entrepreneur, who is listed on Google,” had received several unwanted “texts, e-mails, and posts” from Bining. Chahal’s assistant, Rafael Rojas, alleged that the “personal messages” from Bining had grown into “harassment” of the wealthy businessman.

In an interview today, Bining denied harassing Chahal and claimed that they had first exchanged messages after she contacted him via his Facebook page. Bining, who said that she has not met Chahal, declined to answer additional questions. While she has been contacted by local cops, no charges have been filed in connection with Chahal’s claims.

Following his firing from RadiumOne, Chahal wrote a letter to the firm’s board that referred to the “exaggerated allegations against me” and how he was “practically lynched on social media when the local press began covering the news.” While threatening legal action against the company for wrongful termination, Chahal also charged that the firm was scheming to deny him promised stock options and dilute his stake in RadiumOne, which has been exploring a public stock offering. (2 pages)