A Saudi Sheikh with ties to one of London’s grandest mansions is locked in a feud with a Mayfair casino over an alleged £2 million gambling debt.
Sheikh Salah Hamdan Albluewi is accused of failing to settle the debt with the Les Ambassadeurs Club, an exclusive casino of Park Lane which plays host to the rich and famous and featured in the Bond film Dr No. It is said he “went to ground” when cheques issued in September last year bounced and the casino’s efforts to recover the money foundered, sparking threats of legal action against the Sheikh.
News of the dispute emerged in a High Court ruling on Friday, as a judge removed a freezing order on the Sheikh’s global assets which has been imposed in February as the feud intensified. The Sheikh, 52, whose company SAB Ventures owns the £45 million mansion in Carlton House Terrace, fought the freezing order and “contends that the debts comprise illegal gambling debts”, said Mr Justice Freedman.
The court heard the Sheikh has been a “significant player” at the casino since signing up as a member in 1993, having bought around £14 million of gaming chips and racked up losses totalling around £5 million.