Naomi Campbell blames lawyer for 'fraud and deception' at charity ban appeal

Naomi Campbell blames lawyer for 'fraud and deception' at charity ban appealJust nowShareSaveAdd as preferred on GooglePA MediaNaomi Campbell arrives at court in central London to give evidence in an effort to overturn her charity banNaomi Campbell has said that "identity fraud and deception" by a fellow trustee of her former charity was to blame for a serious misuse of funds.Speaking at an appeal hearing to overturn a charity ban against her, Campbell alleged that co-trustee and lawyer, Bianka Hellmich, forged her signature and impersonated her using a fake email address to misdirect money that was intended for the charity, Fashion for Relief.Her "only mistake" was trusting Hellmich, Campbell told the tribunal on Tuesday.In 2024, Campbell was banned from running a charity for five years after a UK watchdog found widespread evidence of financial misconduct. She has always denied any wrongdoing.Bianka Hellmich, who has previously told the Guardian there is "absolutely no truth to the allegations", was banned for nine years and a third trustee, Veronica Chou, was disqualified for four years.The watchdog found that hundreds of thousands of pounds that should have gone to the charity was instead used on luxury hotels, spa treatments, cigarettes and security for the supermodel.In written submissions, Campbell's lawyer, Andrew Westwood KC alleged that Hellmich "carried out a long-term and consistent scheme of mismanagement and deception in relation to the running of the charity" which she concealed from others.Campbell, 56, also accused Hellmich of lying about her credentials as a charity lawyer, admitting that she did not do reference or credential checks because Hellmich "came across as a lawyer" and had worked in "official positions"."I trusted the wrong person, what more do you want?" Campbell told the court, when pressed as to whether she should have done more due diligence."You...