Candy brothers told to come clean on sheikh

Could it be that the apparently unstoppable ascent of the Candy brothers – the 30-something London property developers who began their multi-million pound empire as students in 1995 with a £122,000 buy-to-let flat – is about to take a downward turn? The brothers are currently attempting to get a toe-hold in the US market with a £250m luxury development in Beverly Hills, but prominent Jewish residents in the area are demanding that they reveal the names of their Middle Eastern backers, with claims that one of them is a well known anti-semite.

According to the influential Beverly Hills Blog, local councillors have challenged the brothers to say if Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber al-Thani, the Prime Minister of Qatar, is involved. The Sheikh is the part owner of a Middle Eastern newspaper which, the blog claims, propagates anti-Semitic and anti-American views. It seemed a fair bet he would be involved - the Sheikh and the Qatari government have bankrolled a number of the brothers' developments in London, including the £900m acquisition of the Chelsea Barracks.

J A Mirisch, the Hollywood film distributor behind the Beverly Hills Blog, says: "Are we really so desperate that we need to welcome into our community people who incite further hatred against Jews and Americans, or, for that matter, people who see fit do business with such anti-Semites and America-haters?" (Continued below)

Fearful that this might jeopardise their plans, Chris Candy, the older and more bullish of the brothers, recently flew to Los Angeles to try to reassure the Beverly Hills city council that the Sheikh was not involved. However, bad feeling and suspicion remain rife. Says Chris Candy: "I think it's fair to say that this has been a lot harder than we thought."