Former Mandela associate charged

THE HAGUE, Netherlands, Oct. 2 (UPI) -- The former head of Nelson Mandela's children's charity has been charged with illegally keeping diamonds given to him by a British supermodel, prosecutors said.

South African prosecutors charged Jeremy Ractliffe, the former chief executive of Nelson Mandela's Children Fund, under the Diamonds Act of 1956, the BBC reported.

Model Naomi Campbell testified in August she gave Ractliffe the "dirty-looking stones" in 1997 after a charity dinner hosted by Mandela, where ex-Libertarian leader Charles Taylor was also a guest. Taylor has been charged with war crimes.

At Taylor's trial at The Hague in August, Campbell testified two unidentified men came to her room after the dinner, and gave her the uncut gems. Campbell testified she had no proof the diamonds came from Taylor, and that she gave them to Ractliffe because she wanted the stones to go to charity.

Prosecutors said the gems are "blood diamonds" mined illegally, which Taylor used to purchase weapons for Sierra Leone's RUF rebels during the 1991-2001 civil war.

In a statement at the time of his resignation, Ractliffe said he decided to keep the stones because he didn't want to involve Mandela's charity in anything illegal.

Ractliffe's next court date is Oct. 27, the BBC said.