Johnny Depp's security guard reveals to High Court unseen photos of movie star's 'red and scratched' face after his 'ex-wife Amber Heard slapped him'
Johnny Depp's security guard today revealed four photographs of the Hollywood actor with injuries after his then-wife Amber Heard allegedly attacked him, to support his sensational libel claim against a newspaper.
Depp, 57, is suing The Sun publisher News Group Newspapers (NGN) and its executive editor at the High Court over an April 2018 article which alleged he was violent towards Heard, 34, during their tumultuous relationship.
Security guard Sean Bett, who has worked for Depp for nine years, said he took three pictures on his mobile phone of the actor in December 2015, adding: 'Mr Depp told me that Miss Heard had slapped him in the face a few times.'
Asked in court by Depp's lawyer David Sherborne what he could see, Mr Bett replied: 'I could see what appears to be redness and what appears to be a 1.5 inch to 2 inch scratch and redness to the right of that scratch.'
Mr Bett also revealed a fourth photograph of an injured Depp in his witness statement released today, claiming that the injury in that picture was caused by Heard following her 30th birthday party in Los Angeles in April 2016.
But NGN's barrister Sasha Wass QC told the court that the photograph was actually taken in March 2015 in the same city on a date when Heard had already admitted she attacked Depp in defence of her sister Whitney.
Heard has previously claimed she and Depp were having an argument when he approached Whitney on a landing between two staircases in their home in Los Angeles - and she feared he might push her, so hit him in the face.
Last week, Ms Wass claimed in court that the couple had an argument in March 2015 because Heard found out he was having an affair with a woman named Rochelle Hathaway, with Depp responding that Heard 'was quite jealous of Rochelle and several other people, so I don't know that she found out I was having an affair'.
It is another bombshell development in the extraordinary case ongoing in London, with the court also told today:
- Depp's bodyguard insisted he was not lying over claims that he saw Depp being regularly attacked by Heard;
- The security guard, Sean Bett, said he regularly saw Heard throw 'bottles, glass and other objects' at Depp;
- Heard was 'verbally and physically abusive' towards Depp throughout their relationship, he also said;
- Depp's former partners Vanessa Paradis and Winona Ryder will now not appear to support his libel claim.
Today in court, Mr Bett also insisted that he was not lying over claims that he saw Depp being regularly attacked by Heard but never hit back. When accused of lying by Ms Wass, he said: 'You can call me a liar a hundred times but I'm not lying, I'm telling the truth.'



Security guard Sean Bett, who has worked for Johnny Depp for nine years, said he took three pictures on his mobile phone of the actor in December 2015, adding: 'Mr Depp told me that Miss Heard had slapped him in the face a few times'

Johnny Depp's security guard Sean Bett today revealed a photograph of the actor with a black eye after his then-wife Amber Heard allegedly punched him. He said it was taken on April 2016, but the court heard claim it was actually March 2015


Johnny Depp (left) and Amber Heard (right) wave as they leave the Royal Courts of Justice in London this afternoon. Depp was pictured holding a notebook with the title 'Jittery Scribblings of an Overly Caffeinated Introvert' on a faux vintage cover

Security guard Sean Bett (pictured today), who has worked for Depp and his family for nine years, gave evidence at the court
Mr Bett was shown a photograph of Depp with a facial injury. He initially stated in his statement that this was from an incident in April 2016, when he claimed Heard attacked the Hollywood star after he arrived late for her birthday.
Security guard becomes confused over when photograph of Depp's injuries was taken
It was revealed by Ms Wass that the photograph was in fact from an incident in March 2015 when Heard has admitted to attacking Depp in an attempt to protect her sister Whitney.
Ms Wass said: 'This is a picture from March 2015 in which she (Heard) admits she punched Mr Depp in defence of her sister.'
Turning to Mr Bett, she said: 'This is the only photo of Mr Depp with a visible injury. You are suggesting that this injury is in relation to an incident that took place more than a year later.'Mr Bett told the court he had been sent the one attached to his statement by Depp's attorney Adam Waldman and that he initially believed it was the one he had taken, but had recently learned it was a different photo from March 2015, after seeing a version with a time and date stamp.
He said: 'He (Mr Waldman) sent me the photograph initially and asked me if I had any recollection of it and I said 'yes, of course'.
He added: 'I do remember taking that photograph, which now I know isn't the photograph that I took but a photograph was taken which was very similar to that photograph.'
Mr Bett explained that he had not kept old mobile phones and had looked for the original photo he took but been unable to find it, and thought perhaps he had taken the photo on Depp's phone on April 21.

A court artist's sketch of Johnny Depp's counsel David Sherborne reading documents at the High Court in London today

Depp leaves the High Court in London with his team this afternoon following the conclusion of the day's proceedings


Johnny Depp (left) and Amber Heard (right) arrive at the Royal Courts of Justice in London today for the libel trial to continue

Depp is assisted into the High Court by his security team this morning for his libel claim against The Sun to continue

Amber Heard (centre) arrives at the High Court today with her girlfriend Bianca Butti (left) and sister Whitney Heard (right)
He said he realised the mistake a few days ago when he saw the time stamp on the photo and told Depp's lawyers.
Ms Wass put it to him that he had attempted to use the wrong photograph to support his evidence of Depp being injured on April 21 and the security guard replied: 'That is not true, because I have taken other photographs of injuries which I have sent to the attorneys.'
Heard had no injuries following a row with Depp in their LA penthouse, says bodyguard
Mr Bett also insisted that he did not see Heard with any injuries following a row between Depp and Heard a month later in the Los Angeles penthouse they shared, when it is alleged, he left her with a black eye.
In a statement submitted to court, Mr Bett insisted that he had never seen Depp being 'violent to anyone including Ms Heard.'
He claimed that he regularly saw the Aquaman actress throw 'bottles, glass and other objects' at Depp while also being verbally abusive to him.
In response, maintained Mr Bett, Depp always remained passive and 'always tried to remove himself from the situation.'
He also described Heard as 'polite' when asked by Ms Wass if he had found her to be 'perfectly polite' when he was on his own with her without Depp. He was asked about the 'guard shack' at Depp's home.
Security guard reveals how Depp's home had a 'guard shack' for monitoring CCTV cameras
He told the court: 'The guard shack was an area where the security personnel stayed at his Hollywood address. It had several cameras in there, CCTV cameras, where you could monitor the streets and property.'
Ms Wass put it to Mr Bett: 'You said in your statement that Ms Heard never told you that Mr Depp would hit her.' He replied: 'Correct.'
Ms Wass asked if it came as a 'surprise' to him that she did not confide in him in the circumstances, saying he was Depp's employee. 'There was absolutely no reason whatsoever for Ms Heard to confide in you,' Ms Wass said.
Mr Bett told the court he would sometimes drive Heard home to the Eastern Columbia Buildings from Depp's Sweetzer Avenue property in Los Angeles.
Depp would 'feel bad for' Heard and didn't want her driving home herself while upset
He said Depp would 'feel bad for her' and would say that he didn't want her driving home herself while upset, so Mr Bett would drive her and make sure she got home safely.
The bodyguard said: 'During these times she would be crying, saying how much she loved Mr Depp and she's tired of the arguing, and I would tell her, 'well this has to stop between you two'.'
Ms Wass asked him if he was present during arguments between the couple and he said he was there 'when she would get upset for no apparent reason', adding that it was 'like a tantrum'.
Mr Bett was asked about part of his witness statement in which he said Heard was someone who 'behaved badly' when she had been drinking alcohol, and he confirmed to Ms Wass that he had seen both Heard and Depp drinking on 'many occasions'.
Ms Wass QC asked Mr Bett about Heard's 30th birthday party at the Eastern Columbia Buildings on April 21, 2016 and the security guard confirmed that he drove Depp from there to the Sweetzer Avenue home at some point after the guests had gone.
He then confirmed to Mr Justice Nicol that Depp had ownership or control of a number of penthouses in the Eastern Columbia Buildings, Sweetzer Avenue and a Woodrow Wilson address, which is where his children Lily-Rose and Jack and their mother Paradis live.
Ms Wass asked Mr Bett how long he, Depp's former head of security Jerry Judge and Depp were in the apartment building on May 21 2016, to which Mr Bett said 'between 30 and 40 minutes'.
The barrister then showed Mr Bett CCTV footage of the three of them entering the lift at around 7pm and leaving at around 8.30pm. She said: 'It would appear that your estimate of how long you were there is incorrect.'
Mr Bett replied: 'They are slightly off according to the (footage).'
Ms Wass asked what happened when Mr Bett entered the penthouse and whether 'Ms Heard was sitting on the sofa'. Mr Bett said: 'No, she was standing.'
Ms Wass asked if Ms Heard was crying, to which Mr Bett said: 'She was agitated and upset.' He added: 'I can't remember if I saw tears.'
Heard said she would call police 'if he hits me one more time', court hears
Ms Wass said: 'Ms Heard said to Jerry Judge 'if he hits me one more time I'm going to call the cops'.' Mr Bett confirmed that she said 'words to that effect'.

A woman films Johnny Depp arriving at the High Court in London this morning as legal proceedings in the capital continue


Depp waves to the photographers outside the High Court this morning (left), while his ex-wife Heard also arrives (right)Ms Wass asked if Mr Bett was certain that he saw 'no injuries to Ms Heard'. Mr Bett replied: 'Correct.'
He added: 'If you are 20 feet away, in my opinion it can be difficult to see a tear on one's face (but) it's clear if there is an injury of any type, you would be able to see.'
Mr Bett said that he would be able to have seen an injury to Heard 'especially with her fair skin'.
Ms Wass suggested to Mr Bett that 'you are lying and that she had visible reddening to her cheek'. Mr Bett replied: 'I'm not a liar, I'm telling the truth.'
Ms Wass asked if Johnny Depp was 'extremely agitated' when he was being 'ushered out of the flat', and Mr Bett said he was. The barrister said: 'Presumably you have seen him like that many times before.' Mr Bett said: 'No.'
Ms Wass said Depp then went to one of the neighbouring penthouses he owned and 'was threatening people, other people (Joshua) Drew and the other woman'.
Mr Bett replied: 'That's not true. Mr Depp told Mr Drew and the said female to get out of this apartment.'
Ms Wass said: 'When Mr Depp left (the penthouse) he had with him a bottle of red wine, do you remember that?' Mr Bett replied: 'I can't confirm if he had wine with him or not.'
Ms Wass suggested Mr Depp 'threw the wine and smashed the wine' outside one of the other apartments. Mr Bett responded: 'There was no smashing of anything.'
'Did you not see wine dribbled along the wall?' Ms Wass asked. 'I didn't,' Mr Bett replied.
Ms Wass then said: 'You knew the police had been called that night, didn't you?' Mr Bett said: 'I did.'
Ms Wass asked: 'How did you find that out?' Mr Bett replied: 'I believe that the estate manager at the time, Kevin Murphy, sent me a text.'
Ms Wass continued: 'The name of the officers who attended, you found out their names, didn't you?' Mr Bett said: 'Not until they had a deposition and it was made public.'
Ms Wass said that Ms Heard would have known the identities of the two police officers who attended, but that 'there was no way the public would have access to the identities'.
She asked: 'Are you able to offer any explanation as to how the identities of the police officers were released to the Depp team in order to enable them to depose those two witnesses?' Mr Bett replied: 'I have no idea how those names were obtained.'
Ms Wass asked: 'It would have to be some sort of inside information at the LAPD?' She added: 'This is, on the face of it, confidential police information, isn't it?' Mr Bett replied: 'No, if there is a court order... departments in California are bound to release it.'
Ms Wass asked: 'You played no part in seeking the identity of those officers?' Mr Bett replied: 'That's correct.'
Ms Wass put it to Mr Bett: 'Your evidence, Mr Bett, is that Mr Depp is not violent and you are not violent.' He replied: 'That's correct.'
Woman claimed she was 'roughed up' by Depp's bodyguards at an Iggy Pop concert
Ms Wass then referred to a 2012 court case about an alleged incident involving Depp's security guards at an Iggy Pop concert.
She read out an LA Times article about the incident in which a woman alleged she was 'roughed up' and forced into handcuffs by Depp's bodyguards.
'It's not factually accurate,' Mr Bett said. Ms Wass asked Mr Bett: 'Did you ever say to this lady that you were a police officer?' 'No,' he replied.
Ms Wass said the woman's pants were removed 'exposing her buttocks'.
At this point, the judge intervened to ask Ms Wass where her line of questioning was going. Mr Depp's barrister David Sherborne said: 'This is ridiculous.'
Ms Wass asked Mr Bett: 'Do you agree that you were involved in violence against a woman?'
Mr Bett replied: 'No, and those statements are incorrect and it was proved through the testimony of witnesses.' Ms Wass said there was a 'confidential settlement' of the case, and Mr Bett said: 'Yes.'
Mr Sherborne asked Mr Bett about the incident at the Iggy Pop concert: 'Was Mr Depp on his own or with his children?' Mr Bett replied: 'His children were present.'
Mr Sherborne continued: 'You (Sean Bett) described how... Mr Depp, at the end of an argument, would still ask you to drive Ms Heard home because he wanted to make sure that she got home safe.'
He added: 'You said that she would be crying sometimes, she would say she was tired of arguing... at any time, did she ever say that Mr Depp had hit her?' Mr Bett replied: 'No.'
He was also asked if Ms Heard ever said Mr Depp was 'violent' or that she was 'afraid of him', and he said 'no' to both. Mr Sherborne asked: 'Did you ever see any injuries, bruises, marks, swelling on her during those conversations you had with her?' 'I didn't,' Mr Bett said.
Mr Sherborne asked Mr Bett about photographs of Mr Depp which Mr Bett said showed injuries on Depp's face. 'Mr Depp told me that Ms Heard had slapped him on the face a few times,' he said.
Mr Sherborne asked the witness: 'It was put to you, Mr Bett, that you're lying for Depp... that's what you came here to do'. Mr Bett replied: 'That's incorrect.'
Security guard talks about 'recurring cycle' in which Heard would 'abuse' Depp
Mr Bett alleged in his written statement that there was a 'recurring cycle' in which Heard would 'abuse' Depp, who would then 'remove himself from the situation'.
Mr Bett said it was a 'very common occurrence' that the actor would call members of his security team to 'take him away from Ms Heard'.
Mr Bett, a former deputy with the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, claimed in his witness statement that he saw the couple 'very regularly' during their relationship and 'never saw any cuts, bruises or other injuries on Ms Heard'.
'On the contrary, throughout the course of Mr Depp and Ms Heard's relationship, Ms Heard was verbally and physically abusive towards Mr Depp,' he alleged.
'On many occasions, I witnessed her shout at Mr Depp. I was also told by Mr Depp on multiple occasions that Ms Heard had physically abused him.
'A very common occurrence throughout the relationship would be that Mr Depp would have me, and other members of his security team, take him away from Ms Heard, due to her behaviour. He would then stay somewhere else.
'This happened on so many occasions that it is not possible for me to remember them all in detail. However, I would describe it as a recurring cycle that Ms Heard would abuse Mr Depp, who would then remove himself from the situation.'
Mr Bett also claimed: 'Ms Heard often behaved in this way when she had been drinking. I learnt quickly to recognise the signs, so that we were able to leave the situation before it escalated further.'
In his statement, Mr Bett gave his account of an incident on May 21 2016, in which Depp is alleged to have thrown a phone at Heard and smashed objects at their LA penthouse, which he denies.
Mr Bett said he and another security guard, Jerry Judge, were waiting outside and entered the apartment when they heard shouts from Ms Heard.
His statement said: 'When we entered, we saw Mr Depp standing approximately 20 feet away from Ms Heard, who was standing by the couch.
'As soon as Ms Heard noticed that we had entered the room, she looked very surprised; her demeanour then changed and she pointed at Mr Depp and screamed to us words to the effect of 'If he hits me one more time, I am calling the police'.'
Mr Bett went on to say: 'I have quite good eyesight. I was able to see that Ms Heard was wearing little or no make-up, her skin was quite pale and she had no red marks or evidence of any bruises or abrasions to her face or body.
'I could see Mr Depp was visibly upset at having been accused of hitting Ms Heard. However, he never came closer than 20 feet to her during the time I was able to observe them.
'I did not notice any smashed glass or broken bottles in the apartment at the time.'
Mr Bett claimed he, Depp and Mr Judge agreed that the actor should leave the building 'due to the fact that the situation had escalated and Ms Heard was hysterically shouting at Mr Depp and making allegations about his behaviour'.
Vanessa Paradis and Winona Ryder will now not appear at court to support Depp's libel claim
Meanwhile, it was revealed today Depp's former partners Vanessa Paradis and Winona Ryder will now not appear at the High Court to support his libel claim.

Johnny Depp being taken to hospital with a severed finger, following the incident in Australia in March 2015

Depp, 57, and Heard, 34, met on the set of the 2011 comedy 'The Rum Diary' and married in Los Angeles in February 2015. They are pictured at the film's premiere in London in November 2011

Amber Heard photographed Johnny Depp with ice cream spilled on his legs during a private flight from Boston to Los Angeles in May 2014 before showing it to him the next day and saying: 'Look at what you've become', the court heard earlier this week
Actress Paradis, who was in a relationship with Depp for more than 14 years and had two children with him, had been expected to give evidence in support of the Pirates Of The Caribbean star's case over a videolink today.
But the court was told today that there was no need for her - or another ex-partner, actress Ryder - to give evidence because Depp's claim that he has never hit a woman was only tested by the defence regarding Heard.
At an earlier preliminary hearing in the case, part of 47-year-old Paradis's witness statement said: 'I have known Johnny for more than 25 years. We've been partners for 14 years and we raised our two children together.
'Through all these years I've known Johnny to be a kind, attentive, generous, and non-violent person and father.' She added: 'He was never violent or abusive to me.'
This morning, Depp's barrister David Sherborne said the trial timetable had been revised, adding: 'There is no need to reschedule those witnesses (Ryder and Paradis), much as it would have been a pleasure to have them here.'
Witnesses will instead today include Starling Jenkins and Alejandro Romero, who worked at the Eastern Columbia Buildings in LA where Heard and Depp lived.
Heard's former PA accuses her of 'twisting' her own account of a rape for 'her own use'
Yesterday, Heard's former personal assistant accused the actress of 'twisting' her own account of a machete-point rape for 'her own use', in explosive evidence on the seventh day of Depp's libel claim.
Appearing by videolink from Los Angeles yesterday, Kate James claimed Heard, 34, had 'stolen' her story of being 'violently raped' in Brazil almost three decades ago.
In her witness statement, Ms James said she discovered the Aquaman actress had 'stolen my sexual violence conversation with her and twisted it into her own story to benefit herself'.
She added: 'This of course 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.'
Ms James said she was giving evidence because she took 'offence' at Heard's actions.
NGN's barrister Sasha Wass QC suggested Ms James had been 'influenced' by Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas actor Depp and his associates and 'encouraged' to give 'vicious evidence' against Heard.
Ms James replied: 'I'm here for my own reasons ... I'm a sexual violence survivor and that's very, very serious to take that stance if you are not one and I am one. That's the reason I'm here, because I take offence.'
Ms James, who worked for Heard between 2012 and 2015, said her former employer would send a 'barrage of drunk text messages between the hours of two and four in the morning ... on an almost daily basis', describing the messages as 'abusive'.
She accused Heard of deleting all the 'abusive' texts after the actress terminated her employment, adding: 'She saved the ones that weren't.'
Heard 'did not care about throwing anyone under the bus', says former PA
In her statement, Ms James said Heard felt she was 'above the law', and claimed she 'did not care about throwing anyone under the bus, if it meant saving her own skin'.
Heard asked her in September 2014 to send a letter the actress had drafted to Homeland Security officials in the US about a woman named Savannah McMillan, who had been hired to work as a set assistant, Ms James claimed.
According to Ms James, Heard said in the letter: 'Savannah McMillan is a personal friend and, to my knowledge, has never worked unlawfully or otherwise in the United States. Or for me.'
Ms James said in her statement that Heard 'knew this to be untrue' and 'Amber was therefore wilfully lying to the US immigration department'.
She also claimed Heard 'deliberately smuggled' two Yorkshire terriers, Pistol and Boo, into Australia illegally in April 2015.
Heard asked Depp's estate manager to ask her PA to 'lie under oath', court hears
The High Court in London earlier heard evidence from Kevin Murphy, Depp's former estate manager, who claimed Heard asked him to contact Ms James and ask her to 'lie under oath' to an Australian court.
Mr Murphy said the actress also 'demanded' he make a false statement about the animals being 'smuggled' into the country, and told him: 'I wouldn't want you to have a problem with your job.'
In October 2015, Heard faced criminal proceedings in Australia for taking the couple's two dogs into the country illegally.
She and Depp later recorded a now infamous video, which was played to the court, apologising for doing so.

A man holding a placard in support of Depp stands outside the High Court in London this morning ahead of the latest hearing

The carnage in a home in Australia after Depp and Heard allegedly had a fight in 2015, which was released yesterday as part of Ben King's evidence. The picture shows an undamaged phone handset, with Mr King insisting ' I did not see any phones which had been broken', despite Heard's claims that he smashed it against a wall and cut off his fingertip while attacking her




Photographs were issued by Heard's legal team of her with injuries to her face around the time of the alleged attack on December 15, 2015, showing bruising across the bridge of her nose and under her eyes after Depp allegedly headbutted her
Mr Murphy said he lied under oath 'because Amber wielded a lot of power and would have made my life miserable'.
He also gave evidence about the 'defecation incident', when faeces were found in the couple's bed after Heard's 30th birthday party in April 2016.
Ms Wass read a text from Heard to Mr Murphy in October 2014, when the actress said: 'I'm worried she's got brain damage. She can't seem to predict or control when she uses the bathroom.
'Last night she s**t ON Johnny while he was sleeping, like all over him. Not exaggerating.'
Mr Murphy said in his witness statement that, when he spoke to Depp in April 2016 about the 'defecation incident', the actor was 'sullen and disgusted'.
Ms Wass read two text messages sent by Depp shortly after the incident, saying that in one, he wrote 'my wife left a whopper poop on my bed' and 'then he says 'Amber Turd''.
She said: 'In fact, it appears from those texts that Depp found the subject quite amusing,' to which Mr Murphy said he thought the actor was being 'sarcastic'.
Mr Murphy was asked if Heard had told him the faeces in the bed was a 'harmless prank', and said: 'She certainly did.'
Yesterday morning, Depp's previous estate manager, Ben King, gave evidence that Depp and Heard 'argued like schoolchildren', with explosive rows starting from 'banal beginnings'.
He claimed Heard was the 'antagoniser' in the relationship, often 'goading' and attempting to provoke the actor.
Mr King, who worked for the Hollywood star for three separate periods between 2014 and 2016, said he never saw Depp 'be violent or unkind towards Heard, or indeed towards anyone else'.
In his first witness statement, Mr King said that in March 2015 he was summoned to the house the couple were renting in Australia, where he found a 'significant amount of damage' and discovered the actor's severed fingertip on the floor of the bar area while cleaning up broken glass and debris.
Depp has been accused of subjecting Heard to a 'three-day hostage situation' and trashing the house during the Australia trip, which he denies.
His finger was severed during the stay, which he says was caused by Ms Heard throwing a vodka bottle at him, which she denies.
Yesterday, the court did not have time to hear from actress Ryder, who was engaged to Mr Depp in the 1990s, or Katherine Kendall, an actress and #MeToo advocate who claims she was 'misquoted' in The Sun's article.
Depp is suing NGN and its executive editor Dan Wootton over the publication of an article headlined: 'Gone Potty: How can JK Rowling be 'genuinely happy' casting wife beater Johnny Depp in the new Fantastic Beasts film?'.
His lawyers say the article bore the meaning there was 'overwhelming evidence' Depp assaulted Heard on a number of occasions and left her 'in fear for her life'.
Heard claims that, during an incident in Australia, she was subjected to a 'three-day hostage situation' during which Depp drank to excess and took pills.
NGN is defending the article as true, and says Depp was 'controlling and verbally and physically abusive towards Heard, particularly when he was under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs'.
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