In the dramatic saga that was the Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard case, a $50 million defamation lawsuit that received constant coverage over six weeks, it was surprising that Singapore was suddenly mentioned by Depp’s defence counsel.
The evidence that was brought before the court?
A photograph that was taken at Raffles Hotel in 2015, during their honeymoon on the Orient Express Train from Bangkok to Singapore.
Why was the Photograph Important?
The main objective of the defamation lawsuit was to prove that the 2018 Washington Post opinion piece written by Amber Heard, alleging that Johnny Depp was a domestic abuser was wrong and done with actual malice.
In United States legalese, “actual malice” refers to the defendant/perpetrator making the statement either with knowledge of its falsity or in reckless disregard for the truth.
For the same reasons, the plaintiff (Depp) is seeking $50 million in damages caused to his reputation.
But more importantly, the civil lawsuit was publicly aired—troubling stories of childhood abuse, substance abuse, domestic violence and all—was less to recover his reputation but to get the genuine truth out in the open.
The truth being that Johnny Depp has never been violent towards Amber Heard or anyone, despite his tendencies towards dark humour and substance abuse, whilst Amber Heard, who has championed herself as a survivor of domestic abuse, was actually the abuser in their relationship.
Which brings us back to the photograph taken in Raffles Hotel and its significance.
During the trial, the court heard that one of the instances where Heard had been violent towards Depp was during their honeymoon, which resulted in Depp suffering a black eye and bruise to his right cheek.
One exhibit was brought out first, showing an image of the couple posing with the staff of Orient Express. In contrast to Depp’s tan complexion, a slight discolouration can be seen at the aforementioned area.
When Heard was called to the stand to defend herself, she claimed that the bruises on Depp’s visage were photoshopped.
It was then Russel Wong, a Singaporean celebrity photographer with a keen eye and sharp memory, who remembered that Depp and Heard had taken a photograph at Raffles Hotel, since he saw it hanging on the hotel’s wall once.
It’s good publicity to share that celebrities have stayed at your hotel after all, to say nothing of a well-respected artist like Depp himself.
After watching the court proceedings, the incensed Mr Wong proceeded to scour the internet archives for the photograph that evening.
Then, he looked through several blogs and realised that all of them shared the same photograph—raw and unedited save the same sepia filter—of the couple taking a photo with the staff at Raffles Hotel in March 2015.
The most damning evidence?
While the sepia filter made it harder to perceive the bruise, it’s undeniable that there was the same smudge of discolouration on Depp’s face.
The timeline matched up perfectly too—during their Orient & Express honeymoon from Bangkok to Singapore, the then-married couple did stay at Raffles Hotel while they were on the tiny island.
It was the perfect counterargument to Heard’s claim, as the two photographs together proved that Johnny Depp was indeed attacked during his honeymoon, and the inflicted contusion had been severe enough that it took more than a few days to heal.
To give more credence to the claim, there was a close-up photograph taken by Depp’s security guard, Sean Bett, in March 2015.
It was previously used as evidence in a defamation lawsuit in the United Kingdom (though it was later dismissed and happened behind closed doors) as Mr Bett testified that Heard had assaulted his client numerous times.
However, this evidence was rejected by the British court as News Group Newspapers Ltd, the party that Depp was suing then, managed to prove that the photo wasn’t taken in April 2016 after Amber Heard’s 30th birthday like he had claimed, but in March 2015.
The mix-up in dates made the evidence and Mr Bett’s testimony less credible then, but now everything conveniently lines up.
Three photographs to prove that Depp was definitely at the receiving end of a blow during his honeymoon, plus recordings of Heard admitting that she had hit Depp before…
It’s incriminating stuff, that’s for sure.
Wong: My Post Not My Photo
Mr Wong then reshared the photograph on his own Instagram on 20 May, with the hashtag #justiceforjohnnydepp.
Afterwards, the emergence of the photograph caught Depp’s defence team’s attention as someone unknown had alerted them to it. Mr Wong was later contacted by Depp’s lawyer and his team.
In Mr Wong’s mind, he thought he was just “doing the right thing” by exposing a lie.
Although Mr Wong was the one who re-shared the photo on social media and allowed the evidence to resurface again, he immediately set the record straight that he wasn’t the one who took the photograph.
When Depp’s team contacted him, he clarified to them that it was just “his post” and not “his photo”.
Mr Wong also said that he has no idea who the actual photographer was.
The Intern Who Took the Photograph
Shortly after Mr Wong posted a public disclaimer on his Instagram, the actual photographer dropped by and leave a comment.
Tan Li Tong, who goes by the handle of @ibikeshootfly on Instagram, commented below, writing:
“Hi Russel, I took this shot back in 2015 and I also have the original photo in full colour.”
She also mentioned that her friend had informed her that the photo was circulating around the internet.
On 29 May, she posted a series of Instagram stories to share what happened while she was working as a marketing intern at Raffles Hotel in 2015.
Therefore, her taking the photo?
A complete coincidence and a dubious honour, considering the couple’s acrimonious falling out later.
When her friends asked her about it, she had expressed her amusement and admitted that yes, she was indeed the photographer.
She even added a cheeky caption: “Who would have thought a photo taken by lil ol me” would be used as evidence in court.
It’s quite a cute response, honestly.
In any case, the mystery of who the photographer was has been solved!
Featured Image: Instagram (@ibikeshootfly)