Supermodel Naomi Campbell told a tribunal on Tuesday that she was deceived and asked for respectful questioning during her appeal against a five-year charity trustee ban imposed in 2024.
Background of the Charity Commission Investigation
The Charity Commission, which regulates charities in England and Wales, disqualified Campbell from being a charity trustee for five years after finding serious mismanagement of funds at Fashion For Relief, a charity she founded. The investigation revealed that charity funds were used to pay for Campbell's stay at a five-star hotel in Cannes, France, as well as spa treatments, room service, and cigarettes.
Two other trustees of the charity were also disqualified: Bianka Hellmich for nine years, and Veronica Chou for four years.
Campbell's Evidence at the Tribunal
Giving evidence at a tribunal in central London, Campbell said her only mistake was trusting Hellmich, who she alleges forged her signature and lied about her credentials as a charity lawyer. The tribunal previously heard claims from Campbell's legal team that Hellmich was paid over £500,000 from charity funds between 2016 and 2021.
Campbell stated: “I did not do a check on Bianca Hellmich – when I’m introduced to a lawyer, I assume they are acting within the law.” She rejected suggestions that she should have checked, noting that Hellmich came across as a lawyer and worked in official positions. “I don’t look at it as a failure, I look at it as me trusting someone that I knew, someone that was a lawyer,” Campbell said.
Exchanges with the Charity Commission
During cross-examination by Faisel Sadiq, representing the Charity Commission, Campbell interrupted several times. She said: “I’m here because I have been deceived, you are here because you have been deceived, so let’s both be respectful to each other.” Judge Joe Neville intervened, noting that not everything Mr. Sadiq said was a challenge, to which Campbell replied: “Yes but it comes across as a challenge.” The judge later criticized Mr. Sadiq for being “unnecessarily challenging.”
Campbell told the tribunal that Fashion For Relief was set up in the US in 2005 and had no problems before becoming a registered charity in the UK. She said she loved the charity work and rejected the suggestion that she did it for public relations, stating: “I’m already famous enough.”
Legal Arguments
In written submissions, Andrew Westwood KC, representing Campbell, argued that Hellmich held herself out as a lawyer with expertise in legal, regulatory, and financial functions, advising Campbell to act as a figurehead while Hellmich handled those responsibilities. Westwood said: “Ms Hellmich carried out a long-term and consistent scheme of mismanagement and deception in relation to the running of the charity and she concealed the same from Ms Campbell and others.”
Mr. Sadiq argued that it was not legally open for Campbell to abdicate her responsibilities as a trustee and simply act as a figurehead. When pressed on due diligence, Campbell responded: “I trusted the wrong person, what more do you want? You trusted her too because you were in communication with her until we let you know that you were deceived.”
Campbell also accused the Charity Commission of failing to check Hellmich's credentials, saying: “I’m one person, I don’t have a management team, the Charity Commission is a Government body, did you do your due diligence? No.”
The forgery and fraud allegations against Hellmich have been referred to the police by both Campbell's team and the Charity Commission. The tribunal continues.
