Bruce Willis resolves dispute with Petra

Hollywood star Bruce Willis has resolved his dispute with the Petra Group and its chairman, Tunku Imran Tuanku Ja’afar, over a US$2 million (RM7.2 million) investment in a “green rubber" venture.

The actor’s attorney, Martin Singer, said in a statement in Los Angeles on Wednesday that the lawsuit was amicably resolved and that it resulted from a series of miscommunications. Willis will continue to have a stake in the company.

In his complaint filed in the federal court in Los Angeles on Nov 20, Willis had claimed that Petra chief executive officer Datuk Vinod B. Sekhar and Tunku Imran induced him to invest in a company that was developing a non-toxic and recyclable rubber in 2007.

Willis said he had been told that he stood to profit from an initial public offering of Petra subsidiary Elastomer Technologies. The IPO did not happen and Willis tried to take his money out of the company.

Petra repaid him US$1.1 million of his original investment, but Willis said in his lawsuit that the remaining US$900,000 was not returned despite assurances given to him.

“Having resolved the matter, I will continue to maintain a shareholding position in the company and I wish the company, the directors and my fellow shareholders the very best for the future,” Willis, star of the 'Die Hard' movies, clarified in the statement on Wednesday.

“I continue to believe in the green rubber technology and the vast potential it holds for the environment,” he said.