Naomi Campbell in court over 'blood diamond' gift

The supermodel gave evidence during a war crimes trial yesterday, telling how she was given diamonds by former Liberia president Charles Taylor

Supermodel Naomi Campbell gave evidence at the war crimes trial of former Liberia president Charles Taylor, yesterday, describing how she was woken in the night by men who gave her diamonds.

The star - who had been attending a charity dinner hosted by Nelson Mandela in South Africa and was staying in rooms at his house - described how men knocked on the door in the middle of the night and gave her a pouch containing 'small, dirty looking stones'.

And when she mentioned the incident to other guests the next morning, Naomi reveals she was told: 'That’s obviously Charles Taylor.’

'They were dirty-looking pebbles. I'm used to seeing diamonds, shiny and in a box,' she said, adding that she often receives gifts day and night, so wasn’t surprised by the gem delivery.

Dressed in a prim white dress with matching cardigan, the model denied talking to Mr Taylor about the stones, describing how she gave them to a colleague and asked him to ‘do something good with them’, meaning for them to be giving to charity. 

Naomi is giving evidence in the trial of the African dictator, who prosecutors allege sold arms to rebels in Sierra Leone in exchange for diamonds during the 1990 civil war.

But the star was initially reluctant, and had to be subpoenaed by the judge to appear.

'I don't want to be here. I was made to be here... This is an inconvenience to me,' she told the court in Amsterdam, before being whisked away by a waiting car.

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