This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/dec/18/charles-saatchi-accused-using-fraud-trial-attack-nigella-lawson
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| Charles Saatchi accused of using fraud trial to attack Nigella Lawson | Charles Saatchi accused of using fraud trial to attack Nigella Lawson |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Charles Saatchi has used the trial of his two former assistants to attack his ex-wife Nigella Lawson because he was looking for a place "to put his hurt and anger" over their disintegrating marriage, a court has heard. | Charles Saatchi has used the trial of his two former assistants to attack his ex-wife Nigella Lawson because he was looking for a place "to put his hurt and anger" over their disintegrating marriage, a court has heard. |
| Anthony Metzer QC, representing Elisabetta Grillo who is accused of the unauthorised spending of £105,000 on accounts used by the Saatchi-Lawson household, put it to the jury on Wednesday that the art dealer considered his client "a soft underbelly" through which to attack the TV chef. | Anthony Metzer QC, representing Elisabetta Grillo who is accused of the unauthorised spending of £105,000 on accounts used by the Saatchi-Lawson household, put it to the jury on Wednesday that the art dealer considered his client "a soft underbelly" through which to attack the TV chef. |
| "Could it be that Mr Saatchi was using this is a way to attack Miss Lawson by turning on one of his most trusted and loved people?" Metzer asked the jurors as they prepared to consider their verdict. "As his relationship with Ms Lawson started to unravel he looked for a place to put his hurt and anger. The extravagant way Miss Lawson kept her extended family on his money was now for him the legitimate place to assert his feelings." | "Could it be that Mr Saatchi was using this is a way to attack Miss Lawson by turning on one of his most trusted and loved people?" Metzer asked the jurors as they prepared to consider their verdict. "As his relationship with Ms Lawson started to unravel he looked for a place to put his hurt and anger. The extravagant way Miss Lawson kept her extended family on his money was now for him the legitimate place to assert his feelings." |
| In his closing speech, he told the jury at Isleworth crown court "this is a case with no winners – not Mr Saatchi, not Ms Lawson, and certainly not my client". | In his closing speech, he told the jury at Isleworth crown court "this is a case with no winners – not Mr Saatchi, not Ms Lawson, and certainly not my client". |
| Metzer added: "While not on trial your verdict is inevitably going to be very significant to Miss Lawson and her public image. Miss Lawson and Mr Saatchi set out to bolster their own reputations in court at each other's expense. My client has been caught in the collateral crossfire like a child in an acrimonious divorce." | |
| Grillo, 41, denies the fraud charge she faces alongside her sister, Francesca, 36, who is accused of defrauding the household of £580,000. | |
| Metzer said the jury's job was to decide whether Lawson did or did not authorise either expressly or by implication any of Elisabetta Grillo's expenditure during the indictment period. | Metzer said the jury's job was to decide whether Lawson did or did not authorise either expressly or by implication any of Elisabetta Grillo's expenditure during the indictment period. |
| He told them Lawson's evidence on drug taking "should be approached with extreme caution", saying it "came from a woman caught between a rock and a hard place" and that she had been bullied to maintain that she had not authorised the Grillos' spending. | |
| Lawson did this, said Metzer, "in fear of an investigation being carried out into her lifestyle which would have disclosed her authorisation of generous personal expenditure by her staff on his credit card as well as her secret drug use". | Lawson did this, said Metzer, "in fear of an investigation being carried out into her lifestyle which would have disclosed her authorisation of generous personal expenditure by her staff on his credit card as well as her secret drug use". |
| He added: "Miss Lawson would have realised that an acceptance of the full extent of her drug use would have a significant effect upon her credibility and her career as an admired public figure." | He added: "Miss Lawson would have realised that an acceptance of the full extent of her drug use would have a significant effect upon her credibility and her career as an admired public figure." |
| The barrister asked the jury to consider if it was credible that Lawson had only used cocaine once since the death of her first husband, John Diamond, in 2001. | The barrister asked the jury to consider if it was credible that Lawson had only used cocaine once since the death of her first husband, John Diamond, in 2001. |
| "Remember the detailed descriptions from the defendants on the issue; the false book, the rolled-up notes, the envelopes left on the toilet cistern," he said. "It would be difficult to hide a drug habit from the cleaners." | "Remember the detailed descriptions from the defendants on the issue; the false book, the rolled-up notes, the envelopes left on the toilet cistern," he said. "It would be difficult to hide a drug habit from the cleaners." |
| He said the culture of spending at the home was one of "largesse", spending up to £1.2m a year including almost £25,000 on flowers and £29,000 on VIP tickets to events. | He said the culture of spending at the home was one of "largesse", spending up to £1.2m a year including almost £25,000 on flowers and £29,000 on VIP tickets to events. |
| "The expression 'different world' might apply to you, members of the jury," he said. | |
| Closing for the prosecution, Jane Carpenter told the jury the Grillos were responsible for a four-year long "greedy and fraudulent free-for-all … abusing the trust and generosity of their employers. | |
| "The defendants could have simply said they were authorised to use the cards,. Why didn't they? Not once did they say that. Do you think it wasn't said because it wasn't true?" | |
| The trial continues. | The trial continues. |
| Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. | Our editors' picks for the day's top news and commentary delivered to your inbox each morning. |