A woman who secretly sold her ex's Lamborghini supercar when they split and blew the money on "holidays, clothes, clubs and alcohol" has been hit with a £300,000 court bill after he sued.
London estate agent Erin Giumba, 28, and international property tycoon Ernest Siow, 28, enjoyed a "brief but intense relationship" after meeting in a nightclub while they were both on holiday in Miami in 2022.
Within weeks, Miss Giumba had quit her job and was enjoying the high life with her new multimillionaire boyfriend, "constantly partying" and driving around London in a £260,000 Lamborghini Urus SUV, which he bought and put in her name.
But the couple split up in November 2022 following an emotional conversation over a meal at premium Japanese restaurant Roka Mayfair.
She then secretly sold the green and black supercar, before splashing the cash on "holidays, clothes, clubs and alcohol."
When her ex complained after finding out, she argued that he had "gifted" the £260,000 SUV to her.
But she is now facing a £300,000 court bill after she was sued by Mr Siow, with a judge this week finding she had no right to sell the car, as it was his.
Miss Giumba had claimed that the case was "not about the car, but about his cruelty," but Judge Nicholas Parfitt found the Lamborghini was not hers - it was to be "used for his business and was part of their relationship."
Although she insisted she has "no money," he ordered that she hand Mr Siow the £219,500 she got when she sold it in November 2022, plus interest, and his lawyers' bills totaling £60,000.
During the trial at Mayor's and City County Court, the judge heard how high-flying Singapore national Mr Siow and Miss Giumba met while both holidaying in Miami in April 2022.
The relationship was "brief but intense," with Miss Giumba quitting her job and working part-time for Mr Siow in his international "rent to rent" property business.
The car, described by Lamborghini as the world's first super-SUV, with the "soul of a super sports car and the functionality of an SUV," was bought in May 2022 with Mr Siow's money and registered to Miss Giumba.
Mr Siow claimed it was bought to use in his business, so that he could make a good impression and look "wealthy and professional" when viewing properties in London, and registered to Miss Giumba only because he was not a UK resident.
But the relationship burned out quickly and the couple parted in November that year after a dinner in Mayfair.
She then sold the car, but having run short of money and with no work, she was back home living with her mum in Hertfordshire and working as a part-time estate agent again by February 2023.
Miss Giumba told the court that the Lamborghini - which she described as her "dream car" - had been a gift to her from Mr Siow, who she claimed was planning to buy a McLaren for himself.
"I initiated the breakup, but wanted to give it another go - he was the one who then said no," she told the judge.
"He was very sweet when we saw each other the final time.
"He told me I could keep the gifts, including the car. He only asked that he could drive the car when he was in the UK a few times a year, and I agreed with that."
Mr Siow's barrister, Jonathan de Rohan, suggested that she had "exploited his generosity and kindness" and sold his car from "under his nose" after they split, before changing her phone number.
"These are not the actions of a person who honestly believed the car to be their property - rather, opportunistically and without notice, disposing of a very valuable item of property belonging to another," he said.
Cross-examining her, he continued: "We know that the vehicle was sold on November 24, 2022, for £219,500. That was transferred into your bank account. What happened to it thereafter?"
She replied: "I spent a lot of it on holidays, things that have no real value or investment. I was in a very deranged time of my life and I was just spending stupidly, as I had learned from Ernest.
"I'm not blaming him. I was just used to doing that."
She said she had lived a certain type of "partying" lifestyle with Mr Siow and "got used to it," spending much of the money in two months on "holidays, clothes, alcohol and clubs."
Even premium bonds she bought were cashed in and the money spent, she said.
"I went down a very dark path," she said. "I am very happy I don't have that lifestyle anymore."
In his evidence, Mr Siow denied planning to buy a McLaren and said he had chosen the Lamborghini Urus because it had seats in the back.
"I don't like supercars with two seats, because I like to drive around with my friends and family," he said.
His barrister said he accepted buying gifts for Miss Giumba, who thought the relationship had long-term potential, remarking what it would be like to have a baby seat in the car.
But he said it had been a "transient, international, inherently unstable relationship," so it was unlikely he would have given her something so valuable.
"It was never intended to be a gift to Miss Giumba, but was to be Mr Siow's car for when he was in London," he said.
"She can have been in no doubt that the car was not hers and that she was not authorised or entitled to sell it."
He said she had confused being registered keeper of a car, as she was, with being its actual legal owner.
Giving judgment, Judge Parfitt said that both Mr Siow and Miss Giumba had been "doing their best to give accurate evidence."
He said he had viewed a video of the car being delivered and the dashboard readout saying "welcome Erin," but that did not prove it was hers.
"The video is consistent with the car being a gift, but it is also consistent with it being part of what she was getting as part of the relationship," he said.
"She was getting him and also an expensive car. It is consistent with the car being available as part of the relationship."
But he said messages between the pair of them showed Mr Siow to be "exercising dominion over the car."
And he added: "Not telling him about the sale is consistent with her understanding that it hadn't been a gift to her.
"It's a car. It's very high value. It is on the face of it the unlikely subject of a gift, given the size of the value.
"It was to be used for his business and was part of their relationship."
Finding that the car was not Miss Giumba's to sell, he told her: "When you sold the car, that money shouldn't have gone to you. It should have gone to the claimant."
He ordered that she pay him the sale price of £219,500, plus two years and four months' interest at five per cent, plus his legal bills of £60,000.
She responded: "I don't have the money...I can't pay."
Royal news – latest: King observed in hospital after side effects of cancer treatment
Grounded: The questions Heathrow must answer over fire shutdown
Teen ‘broken in half’ in horror fall from horse has miraculous recovery
Cargo ship damaged in crash with North Sea oil tanker arrives in Aberdeen
Farage distances himself from Trump approach to Ukraine ceasefire
Sussex University to mount legal challenge to free speech fine
