Mr Loophole is suing ME for rent... after I was attacked in HIS house
Victim to face court ordeal
A FORMER beauty queen attacked and robbed in her own home is being sued by her landlord – the celebrity solicitor “Mr Loophole”.
Michelle Castellano was pinned to the floor with a crowbar as a masked gang raided her plush Cheshire home for cash and jewellery.
Property developer Michelle, 50, who rented the luxury fourbed property from showbiz lawyer Nick Freeman, was stunned to find he was suing her for breach of contract just weeks after the brutal robbery, which is still unsolved.
“I was a woman living alone in a big house,” says Michelle. “After the terrifying experience of being attacked and robbed, I found it impossible to step foot over my own front door.
“I’ve had to have counselling for the shock and trauma and I’m on medication for anxiety.
“The very last thing I expected was my landlord, who is a successful solicitor, putting me through the ordeal of a court case over the rent.”
A-LIST
Freeman, 64, specialises in traffic offences and has defended A-list stars including Sir Alex Ferguson, Jeremy Clarkson, David Beckham and Dwight Yorke. His “Mr Loophole” nickname comes from his ability to get his clients off the hook with technicalities.
Michelle, from Lytham St Annes in Lancashire, had moved into his detached property in swanky Hale Barns, Cheshire, in January 2020 to start afresh after her divorce.
She says: “The house was lovely. The rent was quite high at £2,200 per month but it was just right for my purposes. I was happy to sign a 12-month lease.
“I was feeling quite vulnerable. I’d been married 11 years and then found myself starting again in a new area.”
After only a month she was about to step out of her front door one evening when the masked gang struck. She said: “It was so frightening. A man in black with a balaclava on pushed me to the floor and held a metal crowbar to my face, pinning me down. He screamed, ‘Where’s your jewellery?’
“I was terrified, frozen with fear and unable to speak.
“I could hear the three others running through my house laughing, rifling through my possessions, and pulling my drawers open. They grabbed my phone, my Chanel handbag, thousands of pounds worth of jewellery and some cash and ran off. It all seemed to happen in a flash.
“My GP gave me a prescription for anxiety and stress. I moved into a hotel until I sorted out a new place to live. The estate agents told me I would no longer be liable for the rent if a new tenant was found.”
When someone else did move in, Michelle thought everything was settled. “Then I started getting nasty letters from Nick Freeman demanding £13,200 for termination of the contract – my agreement stated that I needed to give six months notice to leave.
“I had paid approximately £7,000 in rent and other bills up to the
end of April. But he wanted more. Now, he is taking me to the Small Claims Court for £8,462.30. I think it is dreadfully inhumane for a woman attacked in her home to be persecuted like this. I feel I am being hounded for money that I do not owe.”
Nick Freeman said: “The case is listed for trial on the 11th of August and any prior comment would be inappropriate.” scoops@sunday
mirror.co.uk
I feel that I am being hounded for money I do not owe MICHELLE ON BEING TAKEN TO COURT