Nigella Lawson’s aides spent Dh456K a month

An accountant for celebrity chef Nigella Lawson and her ex-husband Charles Saatchi has told a fraud trial that two of their personal assistants spent on average £76,000 (Dh456,210) a month using the couple’s credit cards.

The two assistants — Italian sisters Francesca and Elisabetta Grillo — are accused of spending the couple’s money on buying luxury clothing, handbags, first-class travel and hotel stays for themselves.

The sisters deny the charges.

Accountant Rahul Gajjar told jurors on Thursday that he suspected the sisters’ spending habits but didn’t tell his employers because it was too trivial.