Great Britain: Naomi Campbell banned from charitable work

LONDON (Reuters) – British supermodel Naomi Campbell has been banned from running a charity in the United Kingdom for five years after an investigation into her organization, Fashion for Relief, revealed irregularities in the management of funds.

Naomi Campbell created Fashion For Relief in 2005 to raise money for humanitarian causes by organizing fashion shows. The organization was removed from the list of UK charities this year.

A Charity Commission investigation, the findings of which were made public on Thursday, found that funds had been diverted for the model’s private expenses.

Two other directors are subject to suspension.

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Between 2016 and 2022, the regulator found that only 8.5% of the organization’s spending went to charity. One of the directors, it is specified, received 290,000 pounds ($388,000) in undue sums. The money was also spent on a hotel stay, room service, spa treatments and cigarettes.

“Trustees are legally required to make decisions in the best interests of their charity and to comply with their legal duties and responsibilities,” said Tim Hopkins, deputy director of the Charities Commission. “Our investigation found that the trustees of this charity failed to comply with this duty,” he added.

The regulator has recovered more than £400,000 from Fashion For Relief, which was used to settle outstanding debts, with the remainder going to other charities.

Representatives for Naomi Campbell, 54, declined to comment.

(Reporting by Sarah Young; with contributions from Timothy Heritage; French version by Mara Vîlcu, edited by Sophie Louet)