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SINGAPORE : The High Court case involving prominent paraplegic athlete William Tan and the woman who is suing him for some S$400,000 wrapped up on Wednesday with more relevations about the nature of their relationship.
Dr Tan told the court on the last day of the hearing that Dr Stephanie Chee had never asked for the money to be re-paid.
The 53-year-old claimed that although they were in a romantic relationship, he had to tell Dr Chee's daughters that they were just friends.
He also told the court that one of Dr Chee's daughters had knocked on the door when she heard "noises" while they were intimate in the bedroom on one occasion. Dr Tan explained that her mother was helping him with his leg braces.
On the last day of the hearing of his suit with Dr Chee, Dr Tan said he took loans from a friend to speculate on property and earn money so that he could fulfil Dr Chee's wish of living in a bungalow.
The borrowing was "out of the ordinary" as he is "not a person who jumps to borrow money from people", said Dr Tan. But he "stepped up and went out in search for the funding" because he wanted to build a future with Dr Chee.
"I've had many relationships, unfortunately they never last. So I treasure this relationship very much," said Dr Tan.
He said he had tried to reconcile his differences with Dr Chee after he received a writ of summons from her lawyers last year, but the two could not come to an agreement.
Dr Chee is suing Dr Tan for S$259,800 in financial help that she extended to him from 1999 and 2005.
She is also claiming another S$149,800 for the losses she suffered from purchasing and selling a unit at One Tree Lodge which she held in trust and as a nominee for Dr Tan.
Dr Tan is in turn filing counterclaims and said that the money was a love gift from Dr Chee.
Asked by Justice Tay Yong Kwang why he did not return the money to Dr Chee after her lawyers sent him a letter of demand in 2008 to return S$433,000, Dr Tan said he had asked them for a breakdown of the sum but had never heard from Dr Chee again until he was served with a writ of summons.
Dr Tan also said he had broken up with Dr Chee in 2006 because of "many" disagreements. She was being investigated by the police in mid-2006 for fraudulent offences and both of them had different ideas on how she should have handled the matter, said Dr Tan.
Dr Chee has denied that the two were romantically linked and claimed that their relationship soured because of Dr Tan's "poor" work performance in a charity that they were both working in.
Dr Tan said: "I still have the gratitude to Dr Chee for all the tremendous help given to me. I've never ever met a person who has been so consistently kind to me, consistently helping me. (For) who I am today, I'm very grateful to Dr Chee for what she has done for me.
"All this while, I've always wanted to be a gentleman. Whatever is owed, I'll pay back. But the understanding that Dr Chee has given me is I need not have to pay, that it's all right and we are one family."
Judgement will be handed down at a later date.
- CNA/al
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