The UK banned supermodel Naomi Campbell from being a charity trustee for five years after an investigation found that her charity’s funds were used for spa treatments and cigarettes, according to The Guardian.
London-born Campbell, 54, belonged to an elite group of supermodels who dominated catwalks and magazine covers since the 1990s. She founded Fashion for Relief in 2005 with the aim of raising money for humanitarian causes through fashion shows. However, the charity was delisted as a UK charity this year.
An investigation by the Charity Commission found numerous instances of misconduct and mismanagement. The commission claimed it had suspended Campbell and two others from trusteeship.
Between 2016 and 2022, the regulator found that only 8.5 per cent of Fashion for Relief’s expenditure was spent on charitable grants. Unauthorised payments of £290,000 ($388,000) were made to one of the trustees.
The money was also spent on room service, spa treatments and cigarettes, which was not considered “reasonable expenses,” Charity Commission Deputy Director Tim Hopkins said.
Trustees are legally required to make decisions that are in their charity’s best interests and to comply with their legal duties and responsibilities. Our inquiry has found that the trustees of this charity failed to do so.
The Commission received over £400,000 from Fashion for Relief. The funds paid off outstanding liabilities, with the balance going to other charities.
