HEATHER MILLS has reneged on a promise to donate $20,000 (GBP10,000) to a disabled Russian woman to pay for a pair of artificial legs.
In 2004, Mills - the ex-wife of former Beatle Sir Paul MCCartney - told mother-of-one Maria Rybkina she would help to fund the cost of the prosthetics after losing her legs in a tragic train accident.
But Mills, who lost her own leg in a motorcycle accident in 2003, has failed to honour her promise - forcing the 28-year-old to take to the streets of Moscow to beg for money.
Rybkina can now walk again thanks to the fundraising efforts of British couple Robin and Inna Barratt - but the Barratts are furious with Mills' false promises.
Recalling a phone call they received from Mills herself after they wrote in to the Heather Mills Health Trust, a charity for amputees, Robin says, "She said brightly, 'Hello, this is Heather Mills-MCCartney.' We spoke for a long time.
"Heather said she would personally get Maria some really good artificial legs, which would cost around GBP5,000 ($10,000), and cosmesis - the silicone cosmetic covering - which would be another GBP5,000.
"She promised she would also provide all the medical support needed to get her walking again. She told us that because her charity only helped victims of landmines, she would support Maria from her own personal finances."
But Mills' vows failed to materialise, and the Barratts made up the cash needed for Rybkina's prosthetics by donating $4,000 (GBP2,000) of their own money, as well as holding various fundraisers.
Robin adds: "Heather rang us and emailed us repeatedly with promises to pay for Maria's legs. But every single promise she made fell flat. In the end, she never did anything at all.
"At first we thought she was a really sincere person. But all her big promises came to nothing. It was shocking behaviour."
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