911 call about alleged Johnny Depp, Amber Heard fight released
A 911 call a friend of Amber Heard’s allegedly made to report the actress’ marriage-ending 2016 fight with Johnny Depp was published on Monday — and both parties claim it bolsters their case.
The recording, posted by the Daily Mail, was timestamped around 8:30 p.m. on May 21, 2016, the night Heard claims Depp repeatedly hit her, ripped out her hair, choked and nearly suffocated her, according to the outlet.
“Hi, I need to report an assault right now happening at 849 Broadway at the Eastern building, it’s penthouse three,” the female caller says in the recording, referring to the home the celebrity couple shared.
The caller, who asks to remain anonymous, says her friend named Amber called to say that her boyfriend was physically assaulting her.
“Send somebody up there please,” she says.
But lawyers for Depp, 56, who denies assaulting the “Aquaman” actress, claim the 911 call raises questions about her allegations.
They pointed out that the female voice on the recording doesn’t belong to iO Tillett Wright, a longtime friend of Heard’s who has said he called 911.
That call was recorded in police logs at around 10 p.m., Depp’s attorney said, alleging the discrepancy was proof that Heard and her friends tried to set up the “Pirates of the Caribbean” star.
“Quite simply this was an ambush, a hoax. They set Mr. Depp up by calling the cops but the first attempt didn’t do the trick,” Adam Waldman told Daily Mail.
Heard’s lawyer dismissed Waldman’s claim as “fantasies.”
“Mr. Depp’s representations about the 911 calls on the night of May 21, 2016 are false, and Mr. Depp and his lawyers should know better,” said Roberta Kaplan.
A lawyer for Tillett Wright said he called the cops from New York and had enlisted a friend to phone 911 from Los Angeles, too.
The 911 call recording appears to have been submitted as evidence in the $50 million defamation lawsuit Depp filed against 34-year-old Heard in Virginia.
Depp sued his ex-wife in 2018 over a Washington Post op-ed she penned about her experience as a victim of domestic violence. Depp was not named in the piece, but he insists it was strongly inferred he was the perpetrator.
Heard responded to his lawsuit in April this year by detailing the alleged “horrific” abuse she claims she suffered at the hands of the actor.
The “The Rum Diary” co-stars were married for just over a year before they separated in May 2016.