Naomi Campbell Barred From Being U.K. Charity Trustee After Discovery of “Unauthorized Payments”
Former supermodel Naomi Campbell has been banned from U.K. charity work for five years after funds were found to have been spent on luxury hotels and spa treatments.
British icon Campbell was a trustee for Fashion for Relief, but a Charity Commission inquiry found that the company was not passing on the entirety of the money it raised. “Unauthorized payments” were spent on cigarettes and security for Campbell, among other things.
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The charity was founded in 2005 by Campbell and raised money to combat poverty and support economically deprived young people through charity fashion shows.
Campbell told the AP on Thursday: “I’ve just found out today about the findings, and I am extremely concerned,” explaining she was not the person “in control” of Fashion for Relief or its spending.
She has been banned from charity involvement for five years alongside two other trustees, Bianka Hellmich and Veronica Chou, who have been barred for nine and four years, respectively.
Campbell’s team did not immediately respond to a request for comment by The Hollywood Reporter.
The inquiry found that unauthorized payments totaling 290,000 pounds ($388,000) for consultancy services had been made to Hellmich, in breach of the charity’s constitution.
Commission-appointed interim managers have secured repayments to the charity. These have been used to make payments to two other charities, Save the Children Fund and Mayor’s Fund for London, as well as cover the cost of Fashion for Relief’s liabilities.
The inquiry looked at Fashion for Relief’s expenses between April 2016 and July 2022, finding that only 8.5 percent of funds raised were spent on charity grants.
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