The chief executive officer at Fly540 is set to lose multi-million properties located in Malindi to auctioneers. Donald Smith Earle who is the airline’s top executive will be auctioned over a Sh. 678.7 million debt. The auctioning will be carried out by William Auctioneers.

The auction had been stopped by a court, but now the Environment and Land Court judge James Olola has given the green light for the auction to be carried out after ruling against a case that was filed by Earle and a fellow investor Sonal Smith. “The suit as filed is defective and misconceived. The same is struck out,” Justice Olola ruled.

He added that even though the duo had raised serious issues that required the attention of the court, they could not be heard because of failing to obtain the leave of the court before filing the case.

Earle and Sonar had filed the case in 2020, arguing and asking the court to rule that they did not owe the fallen Chase Bank Sh. 678.7 million. In their petition, Donald Smith Earle and Sonar sued Kenya Deposit Insurance Corporation (KDIC) as receiver of the bank and William Auctioneers who had been instructed to carry out the auctioning.

“The plaintiffs pray for an order of injunction restraining the defendants from selling the suit properties either through a public auction, private treaty or in any manner whatsoever pending the hearing and determination of the suit,” the had said in their petition. They also asked the court to order the corporation to release $1 million (approximately Sh. 113.6 million) together with accrued interest, which they said was being held by the collapsed bank.

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Documents in court showed that the duo had taken a loan prior to the collapse  of the bank through Earle’s company known as Messrs Five Forty Aviation Ltd. However, according to KDIC, the loan had not been fully settled as at the time of the bank’s shut down.