Naomi Campbell Appeals Charity Trustee Ban Over Fraud Claims
Supermodel Naomi Campbell has taken legal action to contest a decision that prohibits her from serving as a charity trustee in England and Wales. Campbell appeared before a tribunal on Tuesday, asserting that she was ”deceived” in a matter that led to a five-year disqualification by the U.K.’s charity regulator.
The Charity Commission issued the ban in 2024, citing substantial financial mismanagement at Fashion for Relief, a charity Campbell founded. The regulator’s investigation disclosed that the charity’s funds were inappropriately used for Campbell’s luxury hotel stay in Cannes, along with spa treatments, room service, and cigarettes. Moreover, only 8.5% of the charity’s expenditures from 2016 went towards charitable grants.
Campbell, 56, contends that she was a “victim of fraud and forgery” and attributes the mismanagement to her fellow trustee, Bianka Hellmich. During the tribunal, Campbell accused Hellmich of forging her signature and misrepresenting her qualifications as a charity lawyer.
Campbell admitted, “I did not do a check on Bianka,” believing Hellmich was “acting within the law.” Hellmich was also disqualified by the Charity Commission for nine years after an investigation revealed she received approximately 290,000 pounds ($385,000) in unauthorized consultancy fees.
Campbell’s legal representative, Andrew Westwood, claimed that Hellmich advised Campbell to act merely as a “figurehead” while she engaged in a prolonged scheme of misconduct and deception within the charity’s operations.
In a pre-hearing written statement, Campbell maintained, “I have never undertaken philanthropic work for personal gain, nor will I ever do so.”
Fashion for Relief, established in 2005 in the U.S. and registered in the U.K. in 2015, aimed to mobilize the fashion industry to combat poverty and support disaster-affected communities globally. The charity was dissolved and removed from the register in 2024.
The charity’s third trustee, Veronica Chou, also faced a four-year ban following the watchdog’s investigation. Additional testimonies from other witnesses are anticipated on Wednesday.
