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British supermodel Naomi Campbell will be sweeping her way out of April's Heathrow Airport incident, in which she assaulted two police officers and verbally abused the cabin staff, by serving 200 hours of community service.
On Thursday, Campbell, who was charged with six different offenses, admitted to four of them– two counts of assaulting a police officer; one of using threatening, abusive words or behavior to cabin crew; and one of using insulting, abusive, threatening behavior or disorderly conduct likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress, while prosecutors agreed to drop the other two.
"Ms. Campbell was aggressive, hostile and violent to people who were simply trying to do their jobs," C.P.S. director Nazir Afzal was quoted by People as saying in a statement. "Her behavior fell far short of what is acceptable."
The 38-year-old catwalker was sentenced to 200 hours of community service and ordered to pay a $4,604 fine, although she was facing a maximum six-month jail term.
"Your actions were reckless,'' Peter Yiacoumi, chairman of the magistrates at Uxbridge Court, told the model, who wore a plain black skirt suit and caused a commotion among photographers when she entered the court.
As if the whole chaos that marked Heathrow Airport's Terminal 5's first 12 days of operation wasn't enough, on April 3, Campbell, who was traveling to Los Angeles, threw a tantrum at the captain, launching herself into a rage against the airport's staff when some of her luggage went missing.
After excoriating airport police who were attempting to restore order—and even spitting on one officer—Campbell was escorted off the aircraft and taken into custody. She was released on bail eight hours later.
When asked for comment, Campbell's publicist, Alan Edwards, told reporters outside court that the model is "incredibly hard working, and she's not scared of hard work."
Campbell, who was also banned by British Airways from traveling on future flights, now has 12 months to complete her community service and pay the fines stemming from the incident.
"I think she is just tired and relieved,'' he added.
However, the model is a veteran in throwing tantrums and assaulting anyone who annoys her even a bit.
Just last year, the model was arrested after hurling the phone - reportedly a jewel-encrusted BlackBerry - which smacked her housekeeper on the head, leaving her needing four stitches. She was sentenced to a week of community service which she spent mopping floors and cleaning bathrooms in New York City.
In 2000, she pleaded guilty to attacking her personal assistant Georgina Galanis, who told a Canadian court the model hit her with a phone and threatened to throw her out of a moving car in Toronto two years earlier. Campbell agreed to take an "anger management" course after the incident.
In 2003, personal assistant Simone Craig sued the supermodel, accusing her of holding her hostage in a hotel and throwing a phone at her.
In August 2004, police in New York recorded an allegation by Campbell's housekeeper Millicent Burton that she had been punched and scratched during an argument over packing a suitcase.
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