Chloe Ayling's kidnapping wasn't a hoax, the British model’s lawyer said after doubts surfaced about her claim to Italian police about captors who wanted to auction her online as a sex slave.
Ayling, 20, told police that two men kidnapped her while she was attending a photoshoot in Italy in July, drugged her and put her in a bag, The Guardian reported.
Authorities arrested Lukasz Pawel Herba, 30, after Ayling showed up at the British consulate in Milan six days later.
The Guardian said questions arose when news emerged that Ayling reportedly had gone shopping for shoes and groceries with him.
"There were legitimate doubts [about her story] at the start, which were surpassed," her lawyer, Francesco Pesce told The Guardian. "What Chloe told police during 10 hours, it wasn't easy on her. If the police were convinced [of the story] after that, then I am convinced. What also would be his [the abductor’s] motive [to collaborate]? Twenty years in jail?"
Pesce told the BBC News that Ayling went shopping with her captor because they had threatened to kill her.
"She was told that people were there watching her and were ready to kill her if she tried anything," Pesce said, per BBC News. "So she thought that the best idea was to go along with it and be nice to her captor, because he told her he wanted to release her somehow and some time."
The United Kingdom's National Crime Agency said it was working with the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU) and the Italian authorities on Ayling's case.
"A house in the Oldbury area linked to Lukasz Pawel Herba was searched on 18 July by EMSOU officers with assistance from West Midlands Police," a statement from the agency said. "Computer equipment seized is being forensically examined."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.