I saw Amber ‘goad and try to provoke Depp as the couple rowed like children’
JOHNNY Depp’s ex-wife Amber Heard often “goaded” the Hollywood star and they “argued like children”, a court was told.
The rows frequently started from “banal beginnings” before escalating, according to Depp’s former estate manager.
Ben King, who worked for the The Pirates Of The Caribbean star between 2014 and 2016, also claimed Depp, 57, often left notes with comments such as “let’s not do this again” and “I love you”.
He also said that during a stay in London in October 2014, he did not see actor drink, but believed Ms Heard “would regularly drink at least one or two bottles (of wine) a night”.
London’s High Court also heard Ms Heard’s former personal assistant accuse the actress of “stealing” her harrowing story of being a rape victim and “twisting” it for her own benefit.
Distress
Kate James chose to break her anonymity, declaring she was sexually attacked at knife point while she was travelling in Brazil.
Ms James worked for Ms Heard between March 2012 and February 2015. She said in 2013 she confided in the actress about her ordeal and her battle to overcome her experience.
In her statement, Ms James said: “To my utter shock and dismay, I discovered that Ms Heard had stolen my sexual violence conversation and twisted it into her own story to benefit herself.
“This caused me extreme distress and outrage that she would dare to attempt to use the most harrowing experience of my life as her own narrative.” Depp is
In court...Depp is suing over claims he beat Ms Heard, right
suing News Group Newspapers (NGN) over a Sun article in April 2018, which labelled him a “wife beater”.
It also alleged he was violent towards ex-wife Ms Heard, 34, during their relationship.
In one statement, Mr King said that he “frequently witnessed Ms Heard goading and attempting to provoke Mr Depp”.
He added that he never saw the actor “be violent or unkind towards Ms Heard, or towards anyone else”.
In a second statement, he said: “Of what I heard of their arguments, they could start from very banal beginnings.
“On one occasion in London, I recall Ms Heard complained that Mr Depp had removed his hand from hers, and she complained along the lines of ‘Maybe you don’t love me’ (because you took your hand away). The argument carried on and escalated seriously. The way they argued could make them seem like schoolchildren.”
The star denies claims of subjecting Ms Heard to a “three-day hostage situation” and trashing the house.
NGN is defending the article as true, and says Depp was “controlling and verbally and physically abusive to Ms Heard, particularly when under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs”. The trial continues.