Miss Universe fashion designer cleared of blackmail
One half of a pair of glamorous cousins is breathing easier after being cleared by a jury of blackmailing her family’s business partner.
Vicki Vlahos and her assistant Milad Ghazi were found not guilty in Sydney’s Downing Center District Court on Thursday of blackmailing Vicki’s younger cousin Danielle Vlahos for nearly $4 million.
The cousins founded the Portia & Scarlett fashion brand, which has been an incredible success in Australia and abroad and is a multi-million dollar buyer’s favorite.
The company was dressing contestants in the Miss Universe beauty pageant in 2023.
Vicki was accused of blackmailing her cousin by threatening to reveal her affair with her ex-husband Issac Chami.
The court was told that Vicki threatened to tell Danielle’s estranged husband about the affair, but Danielle would keep quiet in exchange for $3.8 million.
According to the court, this amount was the difference between the initial offer for company shares, which was not accepted, and the offer made later.
Your older cousin told Danielle, “In order to live freely in Sydney and without ruining your entire life and reputation, you need to pay me $4.3 million minus $900,000.”
During the hearing, Vicki’s lawyer, Tom Hughes, had grilled Danielle about whether she had engaged in criminal behavior to maximize her advantage over her older cousin.
After Vicki was charged with blackmail in 2025, Mr Hughes said Mr Chami announced a plan to delay or prevent key witness Danielle from testifying at Vicki’s trial in return for the favour.
Mr Hughes argued that part of the alleged conspiracy to pervert the course of justice involved providing a false mental health assessment to delay Danielle giving evidence against Vicki.
“When the date gets closer, we can prepare a psychiatric report that says she (Danielle) is not ready to take the stand,” Mr. Chami allegedly told Vicki in a phone call. she said, but Danielle denied hearing it.
Danielle Vlahos denies involvement in the alleged conspiracy.
It took the jury less than four and a half hours to decide that Vicki Vlahos and Mr. Ghazi were not guilty of racketeering.
Vicki cut a dazzling figure during the hearing, arriving at the courthouse in a luxury Maserati car and holding both a Chanel handbag and a purse by Lebanese designer Zuhair Murad.
