A high-profile Richmond-based realtor is now at the centre of a possible defamation suit against an unnamed source of the Globe and Mail after being accused of uttering threats
The Globe published a story last month about a businessman who claimed realtor Layla Yang threatened him with Chinese mob retaliation.
On May 17, Yang issued a statement via her lawyer Bryan Baynham.
“The unfounded allegations in the story concerning Ms. Yang are not true. Recordings provided to the Globe and Mail are not the voice of Ms. Yang. In fact, Ms. Yang has never met, spoken to or represented the source of the story,” noted the statement, sent to the Richmond News by Yang’s assistant, as Yang is not speaking to media.
The alleged threats were supposedly recorded after the unnamed businessman raised questions as to whether or not Yang was listing a $4.3 million home to start a bidding war.
The businessman went on to claim the home was not owner-occupied when it was flipped, leading to more allegations that the purchaser was avoiding capital gains taxes on the profits.
Yang alleges the Globe published “scurrilous and unfounded statements” about her, which have now impacted her “unblemished record of integrity.”
The statement goes on to say that Yang, a licensed realtor, intends to file a lawsuit for defamation and intentional interference with economic relations.
Yang’s economic relations in Richmond, as they relate to the real estate industry, are ubiquitous.
In East Richmond, she is listing a 20-acre farm property on Blundell Road for $11 million. On No. 3 Road, she has a 10-acre farm property listed for $5.98 million.
Yang markets herself as the top one per cent of all Greater Vancouver realtors in 2014.
In April, she posted a YouTube video to show off the VIP party she hosted at River Green 2, the Aspac Developments Ltd. condominiums being built just east of the Richmond Olympic Oval.
Baynham did not return a call from the Richmond News seeking to confirm if proceedings have commenced.
