LOS ANGELES (CN) - A celebrity hairstylist sued Heather Mills for $80,000, claiming the ex-wife of Paul McCartney pleaded poverty even as she was collecting "one million annually in pocket money" from the former Beatle, and still refused to pay his bill after she collected "her 25 million pound (almost 50 million U.S. dollars) divorce settlement."
David Miramontes, professionally known as David Paul, says Mills hired him to work as her hairstylist from spring 2005 until the autumn of 2008. "Mills agreed to pay for David's hairstyling services to assist her with her plan to build her career and become a 'celebrity' in the United States, earn her money from commercial projects and promote her charity projects," according to Miramontes' federal complaint.
"David provided his professional services three times for an entire day when Mills appeared on the Miss America Pageant TV Show," the complaint states. "Mills promised to pay David his day rate of $5,000 per day, but explained she did not have any money because her husband at the time, Paul McCartney, did not give her any money. Nevertheless, David quoted the fee for his hairstyling services is a flat fee of $5,000 per day for out-of-shop services plus expenses. Although Mills claimed that she did not receive enough money from her husband to pay David's standard fee, she promised to pay David as soon as she could afford to do so.
"Every time Mills came to Los Angeles, California, she would contact David and request his services. David informed Mills that his daily service fee for out-of-shop services was $5,000 and his daily in-shop fee was $2,500. On at minimum of twenty (20) occasions, David provided in-shop and out-of-shop hairstyling services for Mills. Mills continuously promised to pay David from the money she was to be awarded from her divorce settlement with her former husband, Paul McCartney.
"In 2005, David provided services for Mills during a Black Tie charity event, where as, after the services were provided, Mills claimed that she did not have the finances to pay for David's services. It was later found out that Mills donated over $30,000 at the charity event despite claiming that she could not afford to pay for David's hairstyling services until after she received money from her divorce settlement.
"David and the public, creating a false public image of herself and undermining David's ability to properly represent Mills. From the outset, David was made to believe that Paul McCartney was a cheap tyrant who was often a drunk and abusive husband. On one occasion, Mills told David that Paul McCartney would get drunk, force her in a wheelchair and frighten her by pushing her at excessive speeds. David believed his client and made a video on the website 'www.YouTube.com.' defending Mills based upon the false information she lied about to David."
Mills lost her lower left leg after a motorcycle accident in 1994.
Miramontes adds: "Mills' celebrity status rapidly grew because of the services provided by David and because he was part of Mills' entourage to help make her look and become famous. David's assistance helped Mills establish a prestigious lifestyle which helped Mills get such a high settlement from her divorce proceedings. During the establishment of Mills' prestigious lifestyle as a celebrity that David helped Mills develop through his services as a hairstylist and member of her entourage, Mills told David that she would take care of David after the divorce by means of paying for David's rendered services. Mills kept emphasizing that, after her divorce, she would pay the people that took care of her.
"On a couple of occasions, David went to a house Mills was renting in Malibu to provide his out-of-shop daily services. David learned that Mills was renting a $100,000 per month house but Mills, again, said she did not have the money to pay David for his services but would pay after her divorce settlement.
"Mills claimed to the public that all her 'Dancing With The Stars' fees were going to charity, but subsequent divorce documents reveal that only a small portion of her fees went to charity. After Mills entered 'Dancing with the Stars,' David arranged his schedule to provide services as Mills' entourage for each of Mills' television appearances."
The hairdresser says that he did not learn until after Mills' divorce, in March 2008, that "Mills had lied to him about the money she was receiving from Paul McCartney before their divorce. Paul McCartney was, in fact, giving Mills one million annually for pocket money."
He claims he waited "month after month" for Mills to pay up, but it never happened.
"On or around December 2008, Mills cut off contact with her entourage that helped make her look and become famous, and started avoiding David because she owed him money. At this point, the celebrity hairstylist David Paul realized he was a victim of fraud. David now believes Mills never intended to pay as promised," the complaint states.
Miramontes wants his $80,000 bill to be pad, and punitive damages for intentional misrepresentation and false promise.
He is represented by Steven Haney.
Neither the law firm nor Mills' official website immediately responded to requests for comment.
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