Sisters' claim that Nigella let them spend £685,000 on company credit cards because they knew about her cocaine habit is 'preposterous', jury told
- Francesca and Elisabetta Grillo engaged in a 'greedy and fraudulent free-for-all' on the company credit card, court hears
- Pair were spending £50,000 a month on their cards during four-year scam
- They will claim 'intimate' atmosphere was created by Nigella Lawson's alleged drug use - and they were allowed to spend freely, court hears
- They shopped in Miu Miu, Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Prada, it is alleged
- Italian sisters worker for Nigella for more than a decade
- Charles Saatchi expected to give prosecution evidence tomorrow
- Jurors told the case is about fraud not 'matrimonial discord or drug taking'
- Panel told by judge they would be '12 unusual people' if they had not heard about allegations Nigella Lawson had taken drugs
By Rob Cooper
|
Two Italian sisters who worked for Nigella Lawson and Charles Saatchi during their marriage were yesterday in court accused of stealing almost £700,000 from the pair.
Astonishingly, the couple’s suspicions were aroused only when the women’s expenditure on household credit cards rocketed from £10,000 to £50,000 a month, the court heard.
It is claimed Elisabetta and Francesca Grillo had been lavishly spending for years – on everything from expensive hotels and designer shopping to costly flights and taxi journeys – before they were rumbled.
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Accused: Italian sisters Elisabetta Grillo (centre) and Francesca (right) spent £685,000 on their company credit cards, the jury was told
At first Miss Lawson and Mr Saatchi were willing to keep employing the sisters while they paid the money back, but called the police when the girls rejected the offer. Francesca even told Mr Saatchi ‘it would be humiliating to live in the house on less pay and she would rather go to jail’.
Opening the £685,000 case, prosecutor Jane Carpenter QC told a jury of five women and seven men at Isleworth crown court in west London that the case was not about Mr Saatchi’s claims his ex-wife was a cocaine addict, but about ‘fraud motivated by greed’.
Evidence': Charles Saatchi, 70, (pictured) is expected to give prosecution evidence against his two former employees tomorrow. His ex-wife Nigella is likely to enter the witness stand on Friday
Miss Carpenter said: ‘This trial relates to the high life lived by Francesca and Elisabetta Grillo – the sort of life you may often see portrayed in glossy magazines.
‘We say they did so in a greedy and fraudulent free-for-all, abusing the trust of their employers in a four-year spending spree.’ Miss Carpenter claimed Francesca, 35, was the biggest fraudster over the four years, racking up bills totalling £580,000, while Elisabetta, 41, accounted for £105,000. Each woman denies a single count of fraud.
The pair were previously housed for free by their employers but now live together in Central London after being sacked.
Drug claims: Nigella Lawson's former workers will make allegations about her alleged drug use, the jury was told today
They
were initially employed by Miss Lawson, described in court as ‘a
cookery writer’, to ‘ensure the smooth running’ of the household and
help with the children.
Francesca was paid £28,000 a year and had worked for the couple for a decade, while her sister began working for Miss Lawson and her late husband John Diamond 14 years ago and was paid £25,000.
Both were provided
with Coutts credit cards in their own names on Mr Saatchi’s Conarco
company account.
It was made clear, the prosecutor said, that these were not for personal purchases unless agreed by Miss Lawson or Mr Saatchi.
But the court heard how in June 2012, Mr Saatchi’s company accountant Rahul Gajjar investigated spending on both cards and found the bills had risen from ‘£10,000-£20,000 a month to £50,000 a month’.
The investigation found there had been large sums spent on long taxi journeys and in luxury shops such as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Miu Miu and Prada. Miss Carpenter said: ‘There was also regular large cash withdrawals which made Mr Gajjar more suspicious.’
A
meeting was arranged where both sisters admitted extensive personal
expenditure and were thanked for their honesty, the jury was told, and
Francesca said that she wanted to pay the money back.
But at a further
meeting in July last year, the tone changed and both women refused to
continue working on a reduced salary.
After a final attempt by Mr Gajjar to find an amicable solution, in August 2012 the sisters were arrested.
Divorce: Nigella Lawson and her ex-husband
Charles Saatchi, 70, are both set to give prosecution evidence against their two former PAs
Claims: TV cook Nigella Lawson has faced court claims that she took drugs. However, jurors were told this afternoon that the case before them is about fraud
Miss Carpenter claimed the women would say their ‘exorbitant’ spending was in exchange for keeping silent about Miss Lawson’s alleged heavy cocaine use.
The prosecutor added: ‘It is anticipated they will claim Mr Saatchi and Miss Lawson permitted them to use the credit cards to buy themselves presents and withdraw cash because of the long hours they worked.
‘The defendants’ case is that Miss Lawson’s alleged drug use and the defendants’ knowledge of it materially affected Miss Lawson’s attitude to the defendants’ spending.’
The case continues.
Accused: Francesca Grillo (left) and her sister Elisabetta (right) leave Isleworth Crown Court this afternoon after the jury heard they spent £685,000 on credit cards
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