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Photographer says he didn't click Johnny Depp's bruised eye pic used at trial against Amber Heard
A picture of Johnny Depp having and Amber Heard showing discolouration under Johnny's eye was used as evidence of Amber's domestic abuse in the defamation trial.
The photographer behind the infamous Raffles hotel picture of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard has finally been revealed. Johnny and Amber's televised defamation trial was watched all across the world, and a Singaporean photographer who was following the case ended up providing some crucial evidence. He later clarified that it was not him who clicked the picture and the original photographer was also found with the help of social media. Also Read| Johnny Depp gives surprise performance at UK concert after trial ends; fans say, 'good to see him happy'
The Singaporean photographer, Russel Wong, had shared a picture of Johnny and Amber that was clicked during their troubled honeymoon in Singapore in 2015 on his Instagram account. It showed Johnny with discolouration under his eyes as he posed with his then-wife and three others on the Orient Express train from Bangkok to Singapore.
Russel believed Johnny's claim that Amber had abused him during their marriage. After Amber's legal team claimed that a different picture showing Johnny with bruises on his face had been photoshopped, Russel tried to find this picture that he had seen hanging at the Raffles Hotel where the former couple went for their honeymoon. Russel shared the picture on his Instagram account on M
ay 20, with the hashtag #justiceforjohnnydepp. To his surprise, Johnny's lawyer soon contacted him, seeking to use the picture in the defamation trial, to prove that there has been other evidence of Johnny being abused by Amber.
Russel recently recalled this story in an Instagram post, as he clarified that he didn't click the photograph and doesn't know who clicked it originally. He also said that he 'just wanted to do the right thing' by uncovering the piece of evidence. Russel later edited his post to give credit for the picture to the original photographer, who was informed by a friend that the photograph she had clicked was going viral.
The real photographer Li Tong, who uses the Instagram handle Ibikeshootfly, commented on Russel's post, "Hi Russel, I took this shot back in 2015 and I also have the original photo in full colour. Thanks @giiiit for sharing the post with me." She provided more details on Instagram Stories, revealing that she used to be an intern at Raffles Hotel when she took the picture.
"So apparently this post is being used in court as evidence? Who would have thought a photo taken by lil old me. This photo was taken by an intern- a marketing person aka me back in 2015," she wrote.
Johnny and Amber met on the sets of The Rum Diary in 2009 and started dating a few years later. They got married in 2015, but Amber filed for divorce in 2016, which was finalised in 2017. Johnny later sued Amber for $50 million for defaming him by portraying herself to be a victim of domestic violence in a Washington Post op-ed in 2018, adding that she was the abusive one in their marriage. Amber countersued him for $100 million claiming that he has smeared her name by calling her a liar. The trial in the case was concluded and sent to the jury on May 27.
