San Francisco-Based RadiumOne Fires CEO After Girlfriend Beating, Plea Deal
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) - A wealthy Silicon Valley tech innovator has been fired from the company he founded after reaching a plea deal in connection with the beating of his girlfriend inside a San Francisco apartment.
Gurbaksh Chahal is now the former chief executive for Internet advertising firm RadiumOne. Chahal became a target of online outrage after avoiding jail time in the beating of his girlfriend. The blog Tech Crunch confirmed that the Board of Directors fired Chahal on Saturday night. He had 45 felony charges dropped in return for pleading guilty to two misdemeanor battery charges.
The felony complaint stated Chahal, once named America's Most Eligible Bachelor by Extra TV, threatened to kill his girlfriend, hit her repeatedly in the head and body, and restricted her breathing by covering her mouth during the August 5th attack. A video which police said showed Chahal hitting his girlfriend 117 times in a half-hour was ruled inadmissible after Chahal's lawyers convince the judge that it had been obtained unlawfully.
In online postings, Chahal had called the charges "a witch hunt," saying "I maintain my innocence regarding these exaggerated allegations."
RadiumOne is planning a $100 million IPO within the next year. COO Bill Lonergan will be taking over as CEO.