Naomi 'held assistant hostage'

Naomi Campbell is being sued by a former assistant who claims she threw a telephone at her and held her hostage in a hotel. Simone Craig, 29, alleges the supermodel attacked her after throwing a tantrum, bruising her badly enough to need medical treatment.

Ms Craig, who was hired via a New York agency two weeks earlier, then quit her job.

Campbell, 33, denies the claims, but Ms Craig is seeking damages for emotional distress and embarrassment.

Her lawsuit, filed in New Jersey Superior Court, claims that when she tried to leave the room the model swore at her and threatened her.

It states the model "grabbed plaintiff forcibly by the arms, thereby striking her in the arm, mid-body and a portion of her face, then pulled her back into her hotel room and threw plaintiff down on the room couch with great force".

Ms Craig tried to leave again but Campbell is alleged to have thrown the telephone at her and shouted: "You're gonna stay here and do your job."

The suit accuses Campbell of assault, battery and false imprisonment. It states the incident at L'Hermitage Hotel in Beverly Hills made her "fear for her health and safety if she challenged Campbell's forcible restraint." Robert Rickett, acting for Ms Craig, said: "There was some attempt on Simone's part to resolve this amicably."

Campbell's lawyer, John Rosenberg, who has asked the case be moved to Federal Court, said she "categorically denies the allegations. It's an unfortunate by-product of visibility and celebrity that individuals such as Ms Campbell are subjected to this sort of claim."

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