Thaindian News

THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS (BNO NEWS) — Supermodel Naomi Campbell’s testimony during the “blood diamonds” case is questionable after Monday’s testimonies from actress Mia Farrow and Campbell’s former agent, Carole White, contradict the supermodel.

Last week, Campbell, 40, admitted to have received “dirty rocks” from former Liberian President Charles Taylor, 62, although she claimed to be initially unaware who they were from or where they came from.

According to her testimony last week, in 1997, after a charity dinner party hosted by Nelson Mandela in South Africa, Campbell was awoken in the middle of the night by two men to give her a pouch with “dirty little stones.”

“I took it and I just said thank you, went back and shut my door,” she said. “There was no explanation, no note,” she added, regarding the reason of being given the pouch with the diamonds.

“The next morning at breakfast I told Ms. Farrow and Ms. White what had happened and one of the two said well that’s obviously from Charles Taylor and I just said yeah, I guess it was.”

However, testimonies have contradicted the supermodel’s account of the situation.

“Ms. Campbell entered the room,” Farrow, 65, said. “And as I recall it, she was quite excited and said, in effect, ‘Oh my God, in the middle of the night I was awaken by a knocking at the door and it was men sent by Charles Taylor and he sent me’ as I recall ‘a huge diamond,” the actress stated on Monday.

When asked if she had told Campbell that the diamonds were from Taylor, Farrow answered, “absolutely not, Naomi Campbell said they came from Charles Taylor.”

Furthermore, Campbell’s former agent, White, explained that the supermodel was expecting a gift after flirting with Taylor. “Naomi was very excited and said, ‘Oh, he’s going to give me some diamonds,” White said. “Naomi I think was flirting with him and he was flirting back.”

During Campbell’s testimony last week, she also explained that she had given the diamonds to then-director of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, Jeremy Ractcliffe.

“Three small uncut diamonds were given to me by Naomi Campbell on the Blue Train on 26 September 1997,” Ractcliffe stated, as he reportedly gave the diamonds to South African special police last Thursday.

“I took them because I thought it might well be illegal for her to take uncut diamonds out of the country,” explained Ractliffe. “Naomi suggested they could be of some benefit to the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, but I told her I would not involve the NMCF in anything that could possibly be illegal.”

Taylor has been on trial since January 2008 for allegedly acquiring jewels, which were mined by children and/or slave labor, from rebels in Sierra Leone to sell or exchange for weapons in support of the Revolutionary United Front. He has pleaded not guilty to 11 war crimes charges, including murder, rape, sexual enslavement, and recruiting child soldiers.

Campbell had been hesitant to testify, but she was subpoened and forced to appear in court. She said she was worried about her family’s well-being after she had read on the internet that Taylor had allegedly killed thousands of people.

Campbell’s testimony, along with actress Farrow’s, are critical in the case.