Photograph by Brian Minkoff/London Pixels
Nigella Lawson’s former personal assistants Elisabetta and Francesca Grillo have been found not guilty of defrauding the TV chef and her ex-husband Charles Saatchi ou of £685,000.
The court case brought to light allegations that Lawson regularly snorted cocaine and smoked cannabis in front of her children, but Scotland Yard has said that they will not be investigating her drug use unless new evidence comes to light.
Lawson told the court during the trial that she had turned to cocaine after being subjected to “intimate terrorism” by her then-husband advertising magnate Charles Saatchi, but denied she was a regular user.
After the verdict, Lawson issued a damning indictment of the British justice system, calling her involvement and cross-examination “deeply disturbing”, “malicious”, and “a ridiculous sideshow”.
Prime Minister David Cameron also came under criticism during the trial, after the lawyers for the Grillo sisters called for a halt to the trial after Cameron publicly said that he was on “team Nigella”. Whilst the trial did not collapse, Cameron received a stern rebuke from judge Robin Johnson for interfering in proceedings.
