Kate Moss, ‘punching bag’ claims and Elon Musk texts – Amber Heard key moments in court

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In another eventful day at the High Court, Amber Heard has made more allegations against her ex-husband Johnny Depp – and denied accusations of lying.

The actress is the star witness for The Sun’s publisher NGN, which is being sued by Depp over an article calling him a “wife beater”, and has now spent two days under cross-examination from barrister Eleanor Laws QC.

Here are key moments from Tuesday’s evidence:

Johnny Depp and Kate Moss in the 1990s
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Heard alleged she had been told by two people that Depp pushed Moss down some stairs when they were together

Kate Moss claim

In an extraordinary revelation, Heard admitted striking Depp on one occasion and told the court it was because she believed the actor was going to push her sister, Whitney, down some stairs – and said she thought he had done this before.

Asking about the “nasty row” in Los Angeles in March 2015, Ms Laws accused Heard of being “the violent one”.

Heard said Depp had “hit both myself and my sister” and denied spitting or throwing a can of Red Bull at him.

When asked if she had punched Depp “in the face with a closed fist”, Heard responded: “I did strike Johnny that day in defence of my sister. He was about to push her down the stairs and, the moment before that happened, I remembered information I had heard [that] he pushed a former girlfriend – I believe it was Kate Moss – down the stairs.

“I had heard this rumour from two people and it was fresh in my mind.

“In a flash I reacted in defence of her.”



Amber Heard







2016: Heard – ‘Depp was about to push sister down stairs’

Heard was accused of changing her story and asked why she had never mentioned Moss before, including in details she gave about the incident in a deposition after her break-up with Depp in 2016.

Sky News has contacted representatives for Kate Moss for comment.

Elon Musk, founder and CEO of SpaceX, participates in a press conference at the Kennedy Space Center on May 27, 2020 in Cape Canaveral, Florida
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Texts between Elon Musk and Amber Heard have been read out in court

Elon Musk ‘offered to provide security’

The billionaire Tesla and SpaceX founder has been mentioned several times throughout the hearing already.

On Tuesday, the court was given details about texts sent between Heard and Musk on 22 May 2016, the day after the last of 14 incidents when Heard alleges Depp was violent towards her.

In the texts, Heard told Musk that she was going to obtain a restraining order against Depp.

Musk offered to “arrange 24/7 security” for the actress, the court was told, and added: “The offer would stand, even if you never wanted to see me again… anyway, sorry for being an idiot. The radio silence hurts a lot. It only matters because I really like you.”

Heard denied having an affair with anyone during her relationship with Depp and dismissed a previous witness’s claim that Musk visited her in 2015 while Depp was away, saying she was not in touch with the entrepreneur until the following year.



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Heard seen in lift CCTV with James Franco

Heard and Franco lift footage

Another name that has come up quite a lot is that of actor James Franco, who starred alongside Heard in 2015 film The Adderall Diaries.

Depp has accused Heard of cheating on him with Franco.

CCTV footage was played to the court of Heard, on the same day, 22 May 2016, travelling downstairs in the lift around 11pm at the Eastern Columbia Building, where Depp owned several penthouses, before travelling back upstairs shortly afterwards with Franco.

When asked if she was trying to avoid being seen by the camera, Heard said: “We were talking. He was saying to me, ‘Oh my God, what happened to you?’

“He saw my face… when I let him in. He saw my face and he said, ‘what the f***?'”

Ms Laws asked: “That’s not secretive talking on that camera?”

Heard replied: “Yes, it’s discreet.”

Again, Heard has denied having any affairs while she was with Depp.

Johnny Depp and Amber Heard in more amicable times
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Depp and Heard began living together in 2012 and split in 2016

‘I have been his punching bag’

Accused several times of “making this up as you go along”, Heard has denied she was lying over her allegations, and has spoken more about her claims in court.

At one point during the day’s hearing, she told the court: “He was twice my size and beat me up for years.”

She also said she had been his “punching bag”.

Describing one allegation of violence in 2013, she spoke about the rings the actor wears, and said: “Johnny, back in those days, hadn’t gotten to the point of choking me…

“So, back then, it was just slaps or backhands and when he backhanded me it was still so early, it was a shock, fairly traumatic at the time.

“In retrospect, I feel different but at the time that’s all I happened to notice. I felt his rings hit my mouth, my teeth.”

A picture shown in the witnesses's statement of the faeces in the bed
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A picture shown in cleaner Hilda Vargas’s statement of faeces in a bed

Faeces denial

The court has previously been told about an incident following Heard’s 30th birthday party in April 2016, when “human faeces” were allegedly found in Depp’s bed.

A cleaner, Hilda Vargas, has described finding the mess and Depp claimed it was the actress or one of her friends who defecated in the bed for a joke.

On Tuesday, Heard denied this and suggested it could have been Depp’s dog, Boo.

Ms Laws said Ms Vargas “knew the difference between the mess they made” and human faeces, and asked Heard if the housekeeper was mistaken.

“I don’t know what she’s wrong about, but I can’t imagine, frankly, I can’t fathom what adult would ever do such a thing,” Heard replied. “I don’t think that’s funny, I don’t think that’s even something that could be called a prank.

“I can’t imagine what kind of human being would have a sense of humour like that, other than Johnny, but I don’t think that’s funny, I think it’s horrific.”

The High Court was shown this picture of Amber Heard's alleged injuries following an incident in May 2016
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Pictures of Heard’s alleged injuries on different occasions have been shown in court

Self-harming

One of the alleged incidents discussed during the afternoon was what Heard has described as “a three-day hostage situation”, which she says took place in Australia in March 2015, shortly after their wedding.

While she was there, she took photos of injuries she claimed were inflicted by Depp. During that period, his finger was seriously wounded – he claims when Heard threw a bottle at him, which she denies.

She told the court she was “strangled, punched and sexually assaulted” by the actor and that she had been left with multiple scars following the incident.

Ms Laws refuted that images of cuts to Heard’s arms were a result of “writhing around on the floor trying to get away from Mr Depp”, adding they were “too straight”.

The barrister went on to suggest they were “self-harm scars, inflicted by you”.

Heard refuted this, answering: “I have had them since that night… I have never self-harmed. Johnny’s a self-harmer, I’m not a self-harmer.”

Depp strenuously denies all allegations against him.

The trial continues.

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